


Gibraltar

by sal_si_puedes



Series: Schmoopy Boat Verse [1]
Category: Suits (TV)
Genre: AU, Boat Sex, Boats and Ships, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Lots of Sex, M/M, Past Minor Character Death (mentioned), Shameless Smut, a little angst and drama, and all's well that ends well...., and lots and lots of schmoop, and lots of fluff, boat!AU, but just a bit, the schmoopy boat fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-14
Updated: 2017-03-30
Packaged: 2018-10-05 01:28:21
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 55,332
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10294298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sal_si_puedes/pseuds/sal_si_puedes
Summary: Mike Ross, reluctant genius and former hot shot in the gaming industry, lives on a small boat in Ocean Village Marina, Gibraltar. Working as a tour guide and liked by everyone in town, his life seems to be as simple, carefree and laid back as life on the Rock can be. The peace and quiet that shape his days are profoundly disturbed – in the best way possible, of course – when fair winds bring a beautiful sailing yacht to Gibraltar and to the berth next to Mike’s, captained by an even more beautiful man, Harvey Specter.Mike and Harvey fall for each other faster than they or anyone else can blink and they become pretty much inseparable from day one.Is that thing that blossoms between them going to grow into more than just a summer fling and will love conquer all in the end? Of course it is and of course it will.Harvey and Mike are made for each other, in every story and in every universe. Everyone knows that. Even the winds.(formerly known as "The Schmoopy Boat Fic")





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lawsonpines13](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=lawsonpines13).



> A couple of years ago, I read a prompt on an AU promtps list that [naias](http://lawsonpines13.tumblr.com/) reblogged on tumblr. I wasn't into (writing) AUs back then, but when I read that prompt, I immediately "saw" the boys in that scenario and I _knew_ that I'd write that some day. Well, I thought it would be a short comment ficlet or a one shot.... It seems I thought wrong. :)
> 
> First, I want to thank [naias](http://lawsonpines13.tumblr.com/) from the bottom of my heart - both for the prompt and for everything else. You are a wonderful, inspiring, lovely muse and an amazing beta reader!!! Thank you so much for your constant support, for your input and for your friendship. This is for you!!
> 
> Second: A huge "Thank you!" to everyone who cheered me on throughout the journey - of course the three Smut Summit Ladies Myri, Sandy and Becky; and then Alex, Sophie, Bianca, Mon and Sway!! Thank you!!!
> 
> Third, a big smooch to everyone who helped me with seemingly little, yet very important things - be it with baseball knowledge, with measurements or with photoshop advice. Your help is greatly appreciated!
> 
> [A/N: All the places are real, all the people are made up.]

The golden sunbeams of the late afternoon paint glittering diamond patterns onto the slightly rippled water in the marina. There is an atmosphere of tranquil industry in the air, boats coming in and docking, sailors disembarking, stretching their backs and taking their first few swaying steps on land, blinking against the sunlight and smiling. 

Mike shields his eyes against the sparkling light and narrows them a little, watching an elegant yacht approaching him, steering for the space next to where Mike’s boat, the Sundance, is tied up. Behind one of the two rudders stands what has to be the most beautiful man Mike has ever seen, skillfully maneuvering the yacht into the berth next to Mike’s.

The man is tall and his body looks firm and is, as far as Mike can see from where he’s standing, in perfect shape, and he is moving with an ease that almost makes Mike gasp with joy. His hair, a light golden brown, is tousled from the wind and maybe a little bleached by the sun. He’s wearing a navy blue polo shirt, a light white sweater wrapped around his shoulders, and a pair of slightly old-fashioned yet very stylish pilot sunglasses is covering his eyes, but Mike just knows that they are brown and as beautiful as the rest of this man, as beautiful as the shape of his mouth and the curve of the small of his back. 

The boat, a classic 45’ yacht, a Moody, Mike notes with a smile, slides into the berth easily, and Mike can’t tear his eyes away from the man behind the rudder. Only when he switches the motor off and turns around Mike snaps back into motion, cursing himself under his breath. He jumps off his boat and onto the landing stage, ready to catch the rope the beautiful man is throwing him, and he crouches down and ties it around the bollard with practiced hands, looking up even before he’s finished, watching the beautiful man tie the second rope around the second bollard, securing the boat to the stage. 

“Thank you,” Mike’s new berth neighbor says and takes off his sunglasses, smiling. He takes a couple of steps towards Mike and extends his hand. “I’m Harvey.”

“Mike,” Mike says, and his stomach lurches when his and Harvey’s hands touch. He’ll be damned if he is blushing. “Welcome to Ocean Village – oh, and to Gib, of course.”

“ _Gib?_ ” Harvey’s eyebrows rise, and Mike can’t help but smile back in amusement.

“Yeah, that’s how the cool kids call this place. _Gib._ ”

“Gib,” Harvey says, broadening that killer smile. The crinkles in the corners of his eyes deepen and when he lets go of Mike’s hand Mike’s heart skips a beat. “Thanks. Never been here before, this is my first time to _Gib_.”

“If you need some touristy advice, let me know. I know my way around,” Mike says and nods towards Harvey’s yacht. “Beautiful boat.” 

“Yeah,” Harvey grins and turns to look at the _Sundance_. 

Mike can literally see Harvey do a double take, his eyes widening in amused surprise.

“No,” Harvey says and looks at Mike, then at the _Sundance_ again and back to Mike. “No _way_.”

“What?” Mike turns around to take a look at his boat as well, his forehead frowning with bewilderment. “ _What?_ ” He asks again when Harvey shakes his head, chuckling. 

Harvey takes a step backwards and gestures for Mike to follow him, shooting a glance in the direction of the stern of his own boat. 

_Cassidy_

“No way!” Mike’s eyes widen, and when he looks back at Harvey, the amused twinkle is still glittering in Harvey’s eyes. “Come on!”

The soft sloshing of water, the creaking of the ropes and someone’s laughter in the distance are the only sounds for a moment before they both start speaking again at the same time.

“That—“

“You—“

They both laugh and shake their heads before they lock eyes again.

“One of my favorite movies,” Mike says, still chuckling and Harvey nods.

“Yeah, mine too.”

Mike shakes his head again and shoves his hands into the pockets of his jeans. He rises to the balls of his feet for a moment and tilts his head. “Okay,” he says with what he hopes is a display of nonchalant ease. “Don’t let me keep you.”

Harvey nods and moves to step back on board of the _Cassidy_. “Yeah, I should make a quick visit to the Pier Office, get water and electricity ready and then go and stock up on some supplies.” 

“Yeah,” Mike replies, still rooted to the spot and watching Harvey’s every move. “Try _Morrison’s_ on Westside Road, they are quite well stocked and they deliver. Oh, and if you want to grab a bite later, try _Charlie’s_. Good steaks and burgers and not too far away. As a matter of fact,” Mike grins, “it’s right over there.” Mike gestures towards the other end of the marina. “I’ll be around if you need any help with anything, okay?“

“Thanks, Mike,” Harvey says and gives Mike another of his radiant smiles. “See you around.”

“Yeah, sure.” Mike takes his hands out of his pockets and boards the _Sundance_ , watching Harvey disappear below the _Cassidy’s_ deck. “I’ll be around.”

***** 

Mike has a few errands to run himself, so when he returns to the _Sundance_ a couple of hours later, the _Cassidy’s_ electricity and water supplies are attached, but the boat is dark and empty. Harvey must have left for dinner.

Mike wonders if he really did go to _Charlie’s_ , and for a moment he contemplates dropping by himself but then he decides against it. He grabs a book and fills the cooler with some beer from the fridge and makes himself comfortable in the stern. He takes a bottle out, opens it, the cool glass sweaty against his palm, and he takes a deep swig, but he never opens the book. Instead, he just lets his eyes wander over the rows of boats, then the open water, and every now and then his gaze glides over the _Cassidy’s_ body, the polished railing, up her mast and along the boom with the sails neatly furled. He wonders why Harvey has come here all alone, where he may have come from and why there is nobody with him on that beautiful boat of his. Maybe he’s meeting someone here, maybe he’s waiting. Probably.

He finally opens his book and pulls the lamp closer. It is pretty dark already and the lights in most of the apartments in the Ocean Village apartment complexes, and on quite a lot of the other boats in the marina, have already been turned on. Chatter and laughter from the nearby restaurants and also from the pools waft through the air and Mike closes his eyes.

The image of Harvey steering the _Cassidy_ towards him just a couple of hours ago comes back to Mike and he can feel how his lips curl into a faint smile and how his heartbeat quickens a little. Harvey’s hair, gloriously tousled, and his sun-kissed skin, the line of his shoulders and the arch of his back, the fabric of his pants hugging the rise of his ass so beautifully… and then that smile. That firm, warm handshake. Those eyes, god, _those eyes_.

Mike knows that this is not a good idea, he’s been living here, on the _Sundance_ , for too long a time not to know that, but he allows his mind to indulge itself a little and lets it picture Harvey shirtless. Dark nipples and smooth golden skin. 

He licks his lips and undresses Harvey further in his mind, sinks down to his knees and watches his fingers pry open that button, then the next and the next until—

“Hey!”

Mike startles from his reverie and looks up, only to find Harvey standing in front of him, looking down into the _Sundance’s_ stern and smiling. Fully dressed, alas, and smiling with amusement. Mike nearly drops the book and only then he realizes that he has hardened considerably in his pants. 

“You were right, the steaks at _Charlie’s_ are really pretty good,” Harvey says, and Mike tries to sit up a little, almost knocking over his beer.

_So he did go there._

“Shit,” he curses and catches the bottle just before it topples over. “Sorry.”

“So that is not your first one tonight, right?” Harvey teases and nods towards the beer.

“As a matter of fact it is,” Mike shoots back, trying to give his words an indignant touch. “I’m not drunk.”

“Want another one then?”

“Are you trying to _get_ me drunk?” Mike cocks an eyebrow, grinning up at Harvey. Harvey is wearing that white sweater now and his tanned skin stands out against the light fabric even in the dim light of the marina at night. 

Harvey grins and takes of his sweater in one swift movement, running his fingers through his messy hair afterwards in an attempt to straighten it again. “I don’t know. Maybe?” His smile deepens and he slings the sweater around his shoulders again. “It’s still pretty warm,” he states and tilts his head. “So. Do you want a beer?”

“Naw, thanks,” Mike drawls, angling for another bottle from the cooler. “I’m all set.”

“Suit yourself.”

Harvey boards the _Cassidy_ and climbs below deck. When he returns a couple of minutes later, he is carrying a bottle of beer in one hand and a laptop in the other. He settles into one of the wooden benches on the _Cassidy’s_ deck, leans back against the side of the boat and stretches his legs out along the line of the bench. He opens his laptop and takes a swig from his beer while he waits for it to boot. 

Mike watches him surreptitiously from hooded eyes, pretending to be focused on his book. He watches how Harvey shifts his position until he’s settled in comfortably, his face lit by the light of the laptop’s glowing screen. When Harvey looks up, Mike hastily casts his eyes down and takes a slow, shaky breath. He can feel how he blushes, which makes him grateful for the darkness and the pale artificial light.

“Hey,” Harvey calls about half an hour later and his voice carries beautifully over the softly rippling water. “Mike.”

“Yeah?” Mike looks up and pretends to be torn away from reading, needing some time to adjust to his surroundings. “What?”

“Is it always this warm here at this time of night? I mean, it’s only May and—“

“Yeah. It’s the Levanter,” Mike explains, gesturing vaguely to his left. “Comes from the Mediterranean and is funneled by the Strait. It can really turn up but it’s only a mild one right now. If it holds and you’re lucky you get to see the cloud tomorrow.”

“The cloud?”

“Yeah,” Mike nods, tilting his head slightly backwards. “Doesn’t happen all the time, only sometimes, when the conditions are right. Looks as if the Rock has a beard then. Who knows? Maybe you’re lucky.” He shrugs his shoulders and brings his beer to his lips again. “Could be a cloud day tomorrow.”

He can feel Harvey’s eyes on him while he swallows and he imagines them following the tiny drop of sweat that rolls down the side of this throat, even though he knows Harvey’s too far away to even see it. He blinks the image (and sensation) of Harvey’s tongue tracing the drop in its wake out of his mind (and away from his skin) and lowers his gaze to his book again.

“You know a lot about the place,” Harvey remarks, making Mike’s head rise once more. 

“Yeah,” Mike confirms, nodding slowly. “I should think so. I live here. I give tours sometimes, too, so…” His voice trails away and he takes another sip from his beer. “Yeah, I’d better.”

“What tours?” Harvey asks and sits up, crossing his legs at the ankles.

The laptop’s screen is still glowing, and Mike can see how it goes from working mode to screensaver. He’s dying to know what Harvey’s screensaver looks like, if there’s a picture on it or if it’s just a default setting, he wants to find out what image bathes Harvey’s face in a light that’s a little less bright than the one before.

“Rock tours, mostly,” he says after a short pause. “But also city tours sometimes or the Cadiz region, but the Rock is most in demand, I guess.”

“You’re from here?”

“Nah,” Mike shakes his head and stretches his back. He drains his beer and fishes for another one, which he opens against the edge of a table before he takes a long swallow. “Queens.”

A couple approaches them along the stage, arm in arm and clearly slightly tipsy, swaying a bit and laughing, their heads close together and their lips occasionally touching. They climb aboard the boat tied up next to Mike’s on the other side, and the woman looks over and waves.

“Hey, Mike!” She smiles brightly, and then the man turns around and waves at Mike as well.

“Hey, Victoria,” Mike grins, raising his bottle in a gesture of salute and waving back. “Roger. Had a good night?”

“Yeah,” Roger says, pulling Victoria back into his arms. “Lost at poker, no thanks to this Lady Luck here, but what can I say?” He draws Victoria in for a short, messy kiss, until she breaks free, giggling. “I win at love.”

“You sure do,” Mike smiles and he and Harvey watch the tipsy couple stumble and kiss their way below deck and into the cabin. Giggling and muffled laughter seeps through the air and when Mike turns back to Harvey, there is a broad smile on his lips and a fond twinkle in his eyes.

“Seems like a great place, _Gib._ ”

“Yeah,” Mike says, smiling back, but then his smile slowly fades a little. “Can be.”

“So,” Harvey clears his throat, sets his beer bottle down onto the floor next to his bench and sits up, crossing his legs and nodding at Mike’s worn-out t-shirt, “you’re a Nets man.”

“You’re damn right I am!” Mike leans forward, propping his elbows up on the small wooden table. “Haven’t seen them play in ages but I still follow their games on tv.”

Mike goes on to tell Harvey about the games his father used to take him to when he was a kid but how he never made it to sit in the first row. He tells him about the cotton candy and the smell of sweaty trainers and how he and his dad would discuss the game extensively on their way back home. 

“It’s not the same on tv,” Mike says and wipes his mouth with the back of his hand after emptying the bottle. “I miss going to the games.”

“You’ve lived here long?”

“Couple of years,” Mike answers, nodding. “Seven, actually, next month.”

“Hmm,” Harvey makes, stifling a yawn, and he closes the laptop’s lid. He stretches his back and sits up. “I’m going to call it a night,” he says, smiling at Mike, and Mike nods. 

“Sleep tight. Mind the apes don’t bite,” he says and picks his book up from the table. He opens it again and pulls the lamp another little bit closer. “Good night.”

“Night, Mike,” Harvey says and Mike watches him disappear below deck, laptop under his arm and his ass as perky as an ass can be.

Mike sighs and turns his attention back to his book but only a couple of minutes later he closes is, turns off the lamp and takes book and cooler inside with him. 

He falls asleep with the thought of Harvey’s smile on his mind.


	2. Chapter 2

Mike has to be up early the following day since he’s booked for two tours and the first one starts at eight a.m. with a hike up the rock. The group of tourists he’s with is a bit slow yet friendly and enthusiastic, and Mike has to take an endless series of photographs of them with the apes, collectively and individually, lead them through the tunnels and into St. Michael’s cave, which they love, and on their way back to the Moorish Castle. 

The high-lights of the day for Mike, like they are on each tour he gives, are the Pillars of Hercules and the many stories connected to them. Atlas’s Shoulders. Incredible strength. Atlantis. 

Mike is a compelling story teller and his group drinks in the words that pour from his lips with avid eyes and half-open mouths.

When he has lead them back to Main Street a little after noon and bids his goodbyes, a couple of members part with a quick hug and a more than generous tip. The sun is high in the sky and Mike is glad that he has made the trip to La Linea before this tour started in the morning and collected the minivan for the following one. It would have been a pain to get there and back in time now and it’s far too hot to hurry.

So he just has a quick snack at one of the many cafés lining Grand Casemates Square and a refreshing mint tea before he gets into the car and picks up his afternoon tour group, cruisers from England, six of them, all fair skinned and in good spirits in their very typical, a little loud-mouthed yet charming way. This is going to be an easy one.

The day after tomorrow, he’s scheduled to guide a small group of tourists to climb up the south side of the rock and he hopes it will be a little less warm then. He hates instructing a bunch of beginners how to climb in the searing heat – as much as he likes the physical exercise himself. 

While he drives the new group around and points out sights and tells their stories, his thoughts fly back to the marina and to the _Cassidy_. He wonders what Harvey is doing right now, if he’s below deck or in the stern, if the sun sail stretched over the benches and the folding table is casting soft shadows on his face. If he is working on his laptop again or if maybe he is leaning back against the railing, his legs stretched out and his feet crossed at the ankles, and maybe has fallen asleep in the early afternoon heat. 

He imagines stepping on board the _Cassidy_ , sneaking up on a sleeping Harvey and placing a gentle kiss on his lips, grinning when Harvey’s eyes stay closed but his lips curl into a broad smile and his hand reaches up to curl around Mike’s neck to draw him closer. He can almost feel Harvey’s firm, warm body against his own when it’s time to stop the van for the Cave again.

Mike frowns and shakes his head. He doesn’t quite understand why Harvey is taking up so much space in his mind. He meets new people every few weeks if not days, men, women, making berth next to him again and again, and good-looking people, too. Maybe it’s because he hasn’t gotten laid in quite some time, he muses. Maybe it’s because Harvey is particularly attractive, all sun-kissed skin, tousled hair and addictive smiles – and all alone on his beautiful boat. 

The thought of that sleep-drenched kiss lingers in the back of his mind all through the afternoon and he carries it with him to _Morrison’s_ where he buys most of his groceries for the coming week and then to La Linea and back across the border and into Gib when he returns to the marina in the early evening. He feels in desperate need for a shower so he stops at the marina’s facilities before he strolls back to the _Sundance_ with droplets of water dripping onto his shoulders from his still wet, unruly hair. 

Harvey is right there, almost like Mike has imagined, sitting in the stern, the sun sail holding back the last rays of sunlight and casting warm shadows onto his skin, but he’s sitting at the table, his laptop open in front of him and a look of wondering concentration on his face. He looks so absorbed with whatever it is he is doing that Mike stops dead in his tracks and just watches him for a while.

There is a very faint crease between Harvey’s eyebrows and his mouth is slightly open. Every now and then Harvey’s tongue darts out to lick his lips and all Mike can do is stare. He wonders what those lips might taste like and blushes when he catches himself licking his own lips as if in reminiscence of a kiss. He doesn’t want to disturb Harvey so he simply climbs aboard the _Sundance_ and retrieves the beer cooler and his book from below deck before quietly settling in the stern.

Mike likes the story he is reading, he really does, it is gripping and new, but he can’t quite concentrate on what he is supposed to be taking in. Again and again his head rises as if of its own accord and his eyes find Harvey, steadily working on his laptop. It’s a pretty big laptop with a large screen and the lights from the monitor slowly get brighter than the fading daylight around them as Harvey continues to work.

Mike’s stomach lurches and his heart misses a beat when Harvey suddenly raises his head and their eyes meet.

Harvey’s face immediately lights up with a broad, genuine smile.

“Hey, Mike,” Harvey says and tilts his head. “When did you get back?”

“A while ago,” Mike grins and nods towards the laptop. “You were working.”

“I was,” Harvey smiles and stretches his back a little. “But now I’m done.”

“You love what you’re doing,” Mike states and takes a swig from his almost empty bottle. “I could see that.”

“I do.” Harvey’s voice has that certain warm note in it that brushes over Mike’s skin like the breeze of the Levanter. “I am a very lucky man.”

“So what is it that you’re doing then?” Mike drains his bottle and sets it down onto the floor. He closes his book and sits up. “If you don’t mind my asking.”

“Not at all,” Harvey grins and proceeds to save his work and to shut down the laptop. “Architect. I’m an architect.”

“You build houses,” Mike says, smiling.

“Amongst other things.” Harvey closes the lid and pushes the laptop it a little bit away from him, to the other side of the table. “Office buildings and museums and things like that mostly, but yeah, I do.”

“I like that,” Mike says and his smile broadens.

“Yeah,” Harvey laughs, and his eyes crinkle at the corners. “Me too.”

Mike chimes in and a genuine feeling of happiness fills him, warm and solid. He reaches down and takes two bottles of beer from the cooler. 

“Beer?”

Harvey nods and Mike tosses the bottle at him across the railings of their boats. Harvey catches it with an easy skill that makes Mike’s stomach clench and opens it against the edge of the table.

“Thank you.” They both take a swig, never breaking eye contact.

“So,” Mike says and wipes his mouth with the back of his hand while watching Harvey do the same. “How long are you here for then?”

Harvey shrugs and his smile falters a little. “Don’t know yet. A couple of days?”

“You have to go back soon?”

Shaking his head, Harvey brings the bottle to his lips again. “Haven’t really made any plans yet. I can work from here for the time being and I don’t really… Anyway. At least a couple of days, I think.”

“Good,” Mike says and Harvey smiles again.

“Yeah.”

“Wanna go grab a bite to eat?” Mike asks after a couple of minutes of amicable silence. “I could eat something.”

“Yeah,” Harvey says and sets his bottle down. “Let’s.”

Mike quickly stores away the cooler and puts fresh beer in the fridge. Then he grabs his wallet, runs his fingers through his hair in front of the small mirror above the sink, huffs a quick breath against his palm and climbs on deck again. 

Harvey is already waiting for him on the jetty, that white cotton sweater slung around his shoulders.

“ _Charlie’s_?”

“Nope,” Mike shakes his head. “You’ve got to taste some truly great tapas today. Follow me.”

Mike leads Harvey along the old defense wall to Parliament Lane where _Hacienda Patagonica_ , a small tapas bar, is located. They take their time getting there, slowly strolling through the mellow summer night. Along the way, Mike points out several things to Harvey and before they arrive at _Hacienda_ , Harvey has had a short crash course on the history of “Gib” and the current state of the place. 

“And here I thought you were off duty for the day,” Harvey teases and Mike nudges Harvey’s arm with his elbow.

“Shut up. You love it.”

Harvey just grins and they walk the last few steps in comfortable silence, their arms touching every now and then. At the bar they get settled at one of the high tables outside on the pavement and wait for a waiter to take come over and their orders.

“This might take some time,” Mike says almost apologetically but with a twinkle in his eyes, and Harvey tilts his head questioningly. “ _Charlie’s_ is Great Britain. This? This is Spain, dude,” Mike adds and Harvey laughs.

“I have time,” he says and once again the warmth of his voice feels like a caress on Mike’s skin. “No rush. And don’t call me dude.”

“Dude,” Mike says and Harvey’s grin broadens. “ _Dude._ ”

“ _You_ shut up,” Harvey says and Mike shakes his head.

“Never.”

“Why doesn’t that surprise me?” Harvey’s eyebrows rise in mock exasperation and Mike shrugs.

“They opened this place here just a couple of years ago,” Mike says, nodding towards the entrance of the tapas bar. “Three, maybe four. The main restaurant is in Spain, in La Linea. Great food as well. About a fifteen minutes’ walk into town after you’ve crossed the border, little square where you can sit outside as well. We should go there some time.”

Mike falls silent. For a moment he doesn’t know what to say. It’s just as if he can see himself spending the rest of his life at Harvey’s side, and not just in a vague, general way, but he can actually see every evening and every morning, every good night and every waking up together. He knows that it’s too soon to think about those things, but he can’t seem to help seeing them. _Get a grip,_ he tells himself. _Stop daydreaming. God, you’re not a teenager anymore, and you’re seeing things. What the fuck is wrong with you?_ He blinks rapidly and shakes his head but even after that he can see them cross the border to La Linea, walking side by side, as clear as he can see Harvey sitting right in front of him here and now. He bites his lips.

“I’ve never walked across a border in my life,” Harvey says and searches for Mike’s eyes. “I’ve crossed many, but never on foot.”

“I can show you,” Mike replies and his mouth suddenly goes dry. Maybe it’s just his imagination but he can’t shake the feeling that they’re not just talking about the border between Gibraltar and Spain anymore. “We can go there together. To La Linea.”

“I’d like that,” Harvey says, his voice having become incredibly soft all of a sudden and even warmer than before and vibrating with so much promise a shiver runs down Mike’s spine. He could drown in that voice, just like he does in Harvey’s eyes, and he’d go under with a blissful smile on his face, surrounded by that rich, golden sound, wrapped up in it like in a blanket of sunlight, sheltered – and at the same time more aroused than he’s ever been. From the corner of his eyes Mike thinks he catches a movement of Harvey’s hand, as if it’s going to reach out and touch his, but the waiter chooses that exact moment to step up to their table and greet them.

Of course the waiter knows Mike and Mike fires off their orders in rapid Spanish. Harvey doesn’t get a single say in what they’re having and when he chuckles at Mike’s enthusiasm discussing food and drinks with the waiter, Mike pats him on the arm and smiles.

“Trust me. This is going to be _so_ good.”

It is. At least Harvey assures Mike again and again that he’s never had tapas that were _that_ good. They drink wine and the warm summer night carries their voices and laughter across the table with an astonishing ease. Before Mike knows the sky is pitch black, stars twinkling high above them, and they both are a little tipsy.

“So,” Harvey says, draining the last sip from his glass. “What brings you to Gibraltar? Gib, I mean? As a tour guide?”

“Worked in the industry for a while,” Mike mumbles, pulling his lower lip between his teeth and worrying it briefly. “Then I gave it up. But I liked it here, the place I mean, so I stayed.”

“What industry?” Harvey asks and pours the remaining wine from the carafe into their glasses. “Banking?”

“Nah,” Mike grins and leans back a little on his high chair. “Gaming. Had my own company and all.” His grin broadens when Harvey frowns. “Young man’s game, though,” he says and raises his glass to Harvey. “Decided to get out of it a couple of years ago.”

“And stayed here,” Harvey concludes and Mike nods. 

“Yeah, and stayed here.”

“Must be hard,” Harvey says and Mike shrugs, his eyes narrowing a little and his lips curling into a faint smile.

“Nah, not so much,” he replies after a short pause. “I’m good.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” Harvey smiles and briefly covers Mike’s hand with his. “Mike.”

Mike pays for their dinner even though Harvey insists on taking care of the bill – his loss that he doesn’t speak any Spanish, Mike says, grinning, and he actually blows Harvey a raspberry – and they walk back to the marina, drifting along the warmly lit streets side by side. Just like on their way to the bar their arms and shoulders and even the back of their hands brush occasionally, and when they pass the gate to Grand Casemates Square, Mike stops Harvey by tugging at his arm and turning him around.

“See that place over there?” 

He points to a restaurant right next to the gate, licking his lips. _Gaucho’s._

“We’ve got to go there one night! Best steak you ever had. It’s nice and cool in there in the summer. And we both know you like steak, so…”

Harvey tosses his head back and laughs, Mike’s hand still on his arm.

“You really want to show me everything, don’t you?” He catches Mike’s gaze again and his smile never fades from his lips when their eyes meet and his hand moves around Mike’s waist to the small of his back. 

Mike tilts his head ever so slightly. Harvey’s eyes are drinking him in, and he feels light-headed for a moment. His tongue darts out and runs over his lips and he swallows as his stomach lurches. “Yeah,” he breathes and nods a little, but just a little because now Harvey’s smile fades a bit and his eyes glitter brightly in the night and when their lips meet, Mike feels as if the earth beneath his feet suddenly stops turning. He closes his eyes and savors the sensation of Harvey’s lips gently brushing over his, Harvey’s breath caressing his skin with the utmost care. 

“Hmmm,” Harvey hums and pulls Mike closer and Mike’s arms wrap around Harvey’s body as well. “Hmmmm….”

And then the tip of Harvey’s tongue touches Mike’s lips and a sound escapes Mike’s lungs that under other circumstances would have embarrassed him but not now, not here and not when he is with Harvey. He opens his lips the tiniest bit and Harvey’s free hand finds the way into his hair and with the next breath he takes Mike feels as if he is melting against Harvey’s chest, melting into his embrace and into that kiss that stays so feather-light all the fucking time, and it takes Mike a while to realize that he has hardened in his pants and that Harvey is hard as well.

Mike pulls Harvey closer and opens his mouth, allowing Harvey inside. Harvey tastes of exotic spices and wine and all the words they have exchanged and of the summer night and the slight breeze from the sea and of so much more and for a moment this onslaught of sensations is a little too much and Mike has to break the kiss and to simply feel the rapid beating of his heart in the veins of his fingers fisting around the fabric of Harvey’s shirt. He can’t open his eyes, he simply can’t, so he just stays like that and a second later Harvey’s forehead touches his and Harvey is breathing just as heavily.

A tremble runs through Harvey’s body and spreads over to Mike’s. They move at the same time and their lips meet again in another deep and passionate kiss. Harvey’s tongue and lips caress Mike in a way that makes his head spin and his knees go weak, and Harvey’s breath is the most delicious thing he has ever smelled or tasted.

When they break the kiss again, it still takes quite some time before Mike is able to open his eyes, and Harvey is looking at him with a gaze so intense he actually staggers. Harvey’s hold on him tightens and Mike’s breathing hitches. “Oh god,” he whispers and lets his tongue run over his lips, tasting Harvey once more. “I think I might need to sit down.”

Harvey chuckles and pecks Mike’s lips quickly, touching his tongue to them for just the briefest of moments. “I’ve got you,” he murmurs, placing another gentle kiss on Mike’s lips. 

Mike doesn’t know how long they stand there, just holding each other close, while cars and motorbikes and pedestrians pass them by, some of them cheering or whistling or honking. For a second the thought crosses his mind that quite a lot of them probably know and recognize him, but he doesn’t care. He breathes in Harvey’s scent and listens to both their heartbeats slowly calming down a little, his erection throbbing against Harvey’s thigh in the same rhythm as Harvey’s does against his.

“Okay,” Mike murmurs after what seems like an eternity and nods against Harvey’s shoulder. “Okay…”

He can feel Harvey nod, too, and then Harvey lets go of him and takes a step backwards. “Come on,” he says and gestures to his left. “Let’s get back.”

“Yeah,” Mike croaks, running his fingers through his hair. His cheeks are burning and his lips are tingling. He’s still so hard he thinks he might come in his pants when he moves but he takes a deep breath and steadies himself. “Let’s.”

It isn’t far to their berths but they are in no hurry to reach their destination. Instead they take their time, Harvey’s hand either on the small of Mike’s back or on Mike’s shoulder, casting looks at one another again and again and stopping ever so often to trade slow, lingering caresses. 

Once they’ve arrived, Harvey pulls Mike into his arms for another one of those intoxicating kisses. The sound of the water sloshing between the hulls of the boats barely penetrates Mike’s perception, he’s that focused on his heartbeat and the sounds Harvey’s light stubble makes as it lightly scratches against his skin.

After another eternity Harvey breaks the kiss and gently cups Mike’s face. 

“Good night,” he murmurs and a smile spreads across his face so bright that Mike’s eyes flutter shut for a moment. “Mike.”

Mike nods. “Good night,” he replies and they break apart. “Hey, wanna join me on my tour tomorrow?” Mike asks, nodding in the direction of the looming dark shadow behind his back. “It’s a climb up the Rock and we start at—“

“Can’t,” Harvey says, gently interrupting Mike, and tilts his head. For a moment his eyes cloud but the smile is back in a flash. “I’m sorry but I’ll have to make a trip to Malaga tomorrow, get some things in order, make some arrangements. Rain check?”

“Oh,” Mike murmurs and nods. “Oh, okay. Sure.” He shoves his hands into the pockets of his jeans and winces a little when the movement causes the fabric to press against his hard-on. Blushing, he bursts into a giggle. “Oh god,” he murmurs. “I feel like a teenager.”

“You _are_ a teenager,” Harvey grins back, surreptitiously adjusting himself. He takes a step towards Mike and pulls him close again. “One day,” he whispers against Mike’s pliant lips, “one day I’m going to make you come in your pants.”

Mike moans low in his throat when Harvey’s tongue finds its way between his lips. His cock is pulsing in his pants and his fingers dig into his upper thighs inside of his pockets. When Harvey’s hand at the small of his back pulls him even closer he breaks the kiss and touches his forehead to Harvey’s, squeezing his eyes shut. “Could be this day,” he breathes and bites his lips. “Fuck…”

“Hmmm…” For a short while Harvey is merciless, pressing his groin against Mike’s and holding Mike’s head in place with his left hand in Mike’s hair. “Could be…” But then he lets Mike go after another minute or so and runs his fingers through his hair, trying to catch his breath.

“Are you—“ Mike clears his throat and tries again, his lips still tingling with their kiss. “Are you going to take the boat? To Malaga, I mean?”

It’s quite the sail, Mike knows that, and there might be a strong wind coming up in the afternoon and it’s not easy to sail a boat as big as the _Cassidy_ alone in a strong wind.

“Nah.” Harvey shakes his head. “Gonna rent a car. I’ll be back in the evening. Dinner?”

“Yeah,” Mike smiles and steps into Harvey’s arms again, placing a gentle kiss on Harvey’s lips. Again, they kiss like that for a while, their arms loosely slung around each other, slow and tender, and when they break apart, Mike touches his forehead to Harvey’s once more, his eyes closed. He draws a shaky breath and bites his lips.

“You going to be okay?” Harvey asks gently and brushes his thumb over Mike’s kiss-swollen lips. “Hmm?”

“Yeah,” Mike whispers and nods, his eyes still closed. He takes another deep breath and opens his eyes. When he meets Harvey’s gaze he feels like falling for a moment and he can feel his smile fading a little. He pecks Harvey’s lips one last time and takes a step backwards, nodding again. “Yeah, I’m good. A little more than good, actually.” He winces as his cock twitches in the confinement of his pants.

“Good,” Harvey smiles and nods in return. “Good night, Mike.”

“Good night.”

A warm, liquid calm fills Mike as he climbs on board and then down the stairs into the cabin. He smiles as he can hear how the door to Harvey’s own cabin closes and when he slips under the thin covers of his bunk only a couple of minutes or so later, he’s naked and still hard. Harvey’s kiss, his scent and taste and touch, is still coursing through his system, body, mind and soul. 

He imagines Harvey in his cabin, maybe already in bed as well, or leisurely spread on the bench in the stern, his soft skin shining, illuminated by the moon and the stars and all those many lights in Ocean Village and some fainter ones coming from the other boats in the marina. 

Mike closes his eyes. He can see how Harvey’s hand travels down his chest and stomach, how it gently caresses the insides of his inner thighs, his fingers raising goose bumps on his smooth, sensitive skin, and the movements of his own hand mirror Harvey’s. He takes his sweet time before he lets his fingertips brush over his cock for the first time, from the base to the tip, just very, very lightly.

He hisses. The sensation is light but intense and it travels through his whole body, slowly, gradually. The tingling runs up his sides and down his arms until it returns to his fingertips and back to his cock. 

His cock twitches and Mike can feel how a drop of pre-come oozes from his slit. He can’t remember the last time that has happened. He bites back a moan when his cock twitches again and another droplet joins the first. When he hardens even further and the crown of his cock tips against his lower belly, a touch of moisture taints his skin and he can’t help but run his thumb over his slit, feel that wetness against his fingers. 

Mike’s stomach drops and such an intense sensation of want surges through his body that he has to close his eyes and bite his lips. He wants. All of him wants and it feels as if this want expands and meets with one at least as strong somewhere outside, over the rippling water of the marina. Mike knows that he’s already close to coming but he tries to draw this out, tries to savor the overwhelming, mind-numbing sensations that keep chasing each other one after another, want, need, anticipation, giddiness, vertigo, longing, tension, heat and pleasure, so much pleasure, building and building and finally, _finally_ he allows his fingers to close around his cock, _finally_ he lets his hand stroke himself and _finally_ he can’t help but grant his body permission to move, his hips to roll and thrust, and at some point of time he forgets to control his breathing, there would be no use anyway, and somewhere on the periphery of his consciousness he briefly becomes aware that there may be short, breathless moans falling from his lips but he is beyond caring by then, way beyond. 

All he can think about is Harvey and how beautiful he is, stretched out like that in the moon light, his hand wrapped around his erection, stroking it, slowly and deliberately at first and then faster and faster until he fucks into his own fist, desperate to come, his head thrown back and his lips slightly open, his labored breathing music to Mike’s ears.

And when Harvey opens his eyes and looks at Mike, really looks at him, his lips mouthing Mike’s name, Mike tumbles over the edge and falls, falls, _falls_.

Waves of climax wash over Mike so intense he nearly passes out, and he doesn’t ride them, they ride him, ripping through his body with a lightning-like force. Spurt after spurt of sticky hot come pours over his fingers and onto his chest and stomach and behind closed eyes he can see how white strands cover Harvey’s skin, his stomach, too, and his upper thighs and his strong but delicate fingers, and for the first time in many, many years, Mike tastes himself, because Harvey asks him to, because Harvey says _lick your fingers, come on, taste it_ and _here, lick mine, taste me_ and _Mike_ , offering his come-covered hand to Mike and Mike tastes himself and he tastes Harvey and he can’t really decide who tastes better and he thinks that he has to try that again, taste Harvey again, just to make sure. 

When his climax finally ebbs, his body still tingling with it, still flying, Mike reaches for a tissue and quickly cleans himself before he draws up the covers and closes his eyes. He runs his fingertips over his face, tracing the lines of his lips and the heat of his cheeks. 

He knows he will probably sleep like a baby. 

He does, that smile still lingering on his lips when his breathing evens out and he sinks deeper and deeper into sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

When Mike wakes up to the soft chime of his cell phone’s alarm the next morning, it is still pretty early in the day. He’s supposed to meet his tour group at nine and he needs to eat before they set of, so he climbs out of his bunk and stretches his back. He’s still naked and he lets his eyes wander down his body slowly. There are faint stains of dried come on his lower belly and he runs his fingers over them gently. He knows he needs to shower but he doesn’t want to. He hasn’t looked that beautiful in a long time, and he smiles when that word crosses his mind. _Beautiful._ It’s almost as if he can hear Harvey say it, as if he can see Harvey’s lips forming its syllables. _Beautiful. Mike. Beautiful Mike._

He quickly puts on a pair of light track pants and a t-shirt and slips into a pair of flip-flops waiting for him at the bottom of the short ladder. 

The air is clear and crisp outside and everything is dyed in a faint orange hue. The sunrise over the water. Mike stretches his back again as soon as he has left the cabin and turns around. The rock seems even closer than usual today but that is just because the air is so clear. It’s probably going to be a very warm day and Mike frowns a little, thinking of the group of tourists he has to lead up the mountain safely.

When he looks down again, he smiles. There is a brick lying on the wooden bench in the _Sundance’s_ stern, an honest to god brick, dark red and its surface a little porous, and when he picks it up it weighs heavy in his hand. He runs his thumb over the slightly rough material and his smile broadens as he sets down the brick and picks up the piece of paper that has been tucked under the stone. It has been folded once in the middle and some brick dust has rubbed off on it, delicate reddish specks. Mike relishes in the sound the paper makes as he smoothes it between his fingers for some moments before he unfolds it.

_Mike—_  
_good luck with your tour today._  
_Can’t wait to see you later, tonight._  
_I want to hear those sounds you made last night up close._  
_H._

Even though nobody is present, Mike blushes furiously. He can feel it, can feel the blood rushing to his face and his cheeks heating up in an instant. Apparently, he wasn’t as silent as he intended to be. God, if he had listened more carefully into the night, maybe…

His dick twitches in his pants and Mike winces. Shower, breakfast, get dressed for hiking, tour, shower, maybe get a haircut or something, dinner with Harvey. Harvey. His dick is in full agreement with Mike’s plans for the evening and he really needs that shower, he needs it desperately. 

He can’t help but wonder what Harvey sounds like when he comes, what he looks like and, oh god, how he tastes, and he really hopes that he doesn’t meet anyone on his way to the marina’s showers. Or in the shower. It’s highly unlikely that the facilities will be empty at this time of day, but if he’s lucky he’ll get one of the stalls with the privacy doors. He surreptitiously touches his hardening cock through the pocket of his track pants and hisses. He can’t remember the last time he got that hard that fast. But wait – he can. It was just yesterday evening when Harvey kissed him on the street and he nearly came in his pants or then again, a little later, when they said good night.

Mike feels almost punch-drunk when he slips out of his clothes and into the shower. His cock is straining against his stomach and he is dying to touch himself. He closes the stall’s door behind himself and takes a deep, shaky breath before he turns on the water. Being so incredibly turned on, Mike suspects that even the gentlest touch of the warm spray will send him over the edge and he knows that he needs to hurry lest he’ll be late for his tour. And there is no way he can skip breakfast, but he manages to breathe through his first peak and when he’s fairly certain that he can last a few more seconds, he takes himself in hand. Carefully, gently. 

The first stroke makes him shiver and nearly sends him to his knees. He bites his lips and tilts his head back, letting the warm water run down his body. Harvey’s fingers would be even warmer, even gentler, even more intense and to think about his tongue… Mike’s knees almost buckle and he has to stop for a moment, steadying himself with one hand against the tiled wall of the shower stall. He lets go of his cock and reaches behind himself. It has been a while since he’s touched himself there, quite a while, and the anticipation that fills the humid air in the stall makes him dizzy. 

“Oh god,” he moans quietly as he runs one finger along his crack and over his hole. He doesn’t remember being that sensitive. “ _Oh my god…_ ”

The tip of his finger nudges against his entrance and he can feel his muscles tightening and then yielding a little. He pushes against the barrier a little more and the tip of his finger breaches his body. God, he is tight. And warm. He enters himself further, his finger slipping into him with more ease than he had thought possible. He’s opening up just like that and the thought of Harvey’s fingers entering him that way flashes up in his mind.

Mike opens his mouth and pants, his muscles clenching around his finger, gripping it tight. He pushes it in deeper and curls it a little and… _oh wow! There… Yeah, right there…_

After a few moments he withdraws again, running his fingertip around his hole a couple of times before he takes himself in hand once more. It takes only a very few strokes until he is spilling himself over his fingers, panting and quietly moaning, and he has to muster all the effort he can to keep standing upright.

When he can breathe properly again, he quickly cleans and dries himself off and back on the Sundance he changes into his hiking clothes and checks his back pack for the first aid kit, the battery, the snap hooks, the granola bars, the corn sugar and the walky talky. Everything’s in place and the weather promises to be good, clear and maybe a little too warm, but basically okay for the upcoming climb, so he has a couple of minutes left to grab a quick breakfast. He contemplates leaving a note for Harvey but one look at his watch tells him that he’s already almost too late, so he just grabs his stuff and hurries to the meeting point.

*****

The tour goes pretty well and Mike only has to administer light first aid twice and only to a couple of surface scrapes. The lady with the alleged sun stroke turns out to be all right, just a little hung over from last night’s partying, only three members of his group seem to have a slightly heavier sunburn, and when Mike says goodbye to them at around 4pm everyone seems to be exhausted but feeling accomplished and happy. 

This is exactly how Mike feels as well, tired but happy. His arms and legs feel as heavy as lead and his head feels slightly fuzzy, his vision a little blurred. Those tours always take their toll on him, even though he has done them at least a hundred times. But to get everyone up the rock and bring the whole group back down safe and sound is taxing, especially on a hot day like today. So once the tension ebbs he just grabs a quick shower on his way back to the Sundance and changes into a t-shirt and a pair of boxer shorts before he collapses into his bunk bed and almost immediately falls into a deep, dreamless sleep. 

He doesn’t know how long he’s been asleep when someone touches his shoulder and a warm voice murmurs something close to his ear.

“Mike,” the voice says again, and it feels like honey tastes on freshly baked waffles. “Mike, hey. Wake up.”

“Hmmm,” Mike turns around, trying to get closer to that voice, craning his neck and smacking his lips. “What…?”

“Hey,” the voice says and it sounds as if it is quietly laughing. “Sleepy head. Wake up.”

“Harvey…?” Mike yawns and reaches out blindly. “Hey…”

“Hey yourself,” Harvey says and when Mike cracks his left eye open a little he can see that Harvey is indeed standing next to his bunk, smiling broadly. “Want me to let you sleep?”

“Nah,” Mike smiles back and pulls Harvey close, “’m awake.” He raises his head a little and captures Harvey’s lips in a slow, languid and slightly sleepy kiss. “Yeah…”

“You don’t look awake,” Harvey smiles against Mike’s lips. “You don’t taste awake either…”

“Hmmm…” Mike hums and kisses Harvey again, closing his eyes and sinking back into his pillow. “Come here.”

Harvey kneels down with one knee on the edge of the bunk, bends down and nuzzles at Mike’s neck. His hairs tickle Mike’s face and Mike inhales deeply. 

“You smell good.”

“You too,” Harvey murmurs against Mike’s skin, the vibrations of his voice humming through Mike’s body like low, tingling waves. “So good…”

They kiss like that for a while, slowly and unhurriedly, and at some point of time Mike is yawning into their kiss before he knows it. 

Harvey breaks the kiss and chuckles. He looks down at Mike and cups his face with a gentle hand. “Still tired?” he asks and runs his thumb over Mike’s cheek, slowly and with a look on his face so fond it makes Mike’s stomach lurch. 

“Nah,” Mike says and then he yawns again. Both he and Harvey chuckle and touch their foreheads together for a moment. Then Mike shakes his head. “Nah,” he repeats. “I’m up. Just a bit beat. Bit sore from the climb. But good.”

“Okay,” Harvey smiles and places a quick kiss on Mike’s lips. “How about you really get up now and I make us something to eat?”

“Here?” Mike frowns and turns his head. There’s a pile of laundry on the stove and probably a stack of books in the oven.

“On the _Cassidy_ ,” Harvey smiles and his kiss tastes warm and reassuring.

“What time is it?” Mike mumbles against Harvey’s lips. He has no idea how long he’s been sleeping.

“Almost eight thirty,” Harvey says and Mike disentangles himself from Harvey’s arms and sits up, stretching his back. 

“ _What?_ ”

Harvey nods and rises to his feet, careful not to bump his head against the shelf above the bunk. “When did you come back?”

“Around five,” Mike runs his fingers through his messy hair and blinks. “I think.”

“You sure you don’t want to—“,

“Yeah,” Mike nods and scrambles out of his bunk so quickly he almost topples over and Harvey has to grab hold of his arm quickly to keep him from falling. “Shit. Yeah, I’m sure! I’ve been looking forward to this all day. Since yesterday, to be honest,” he admits, grinning a little sheepishly. “No way I’m going to miss out on this.” He hooks his thumbs into the elastic waist band of his boxers and begins to pull them down but he freezes in mid-movement when he notices Harvey is watching him closely. His cock really seems to like Harvey’s rapt attention and Mike winces, trying not to blush too hard in the dim light of the small cabin.

“Okay, I’ll give you some privacy then,” Harvey says after a moment of locked eyes and a hitched breath on Mike’s side, tearing his gaze away with visible effort. “I’ll be over on the _Cassidy_. Join me whenever you’re ready.”

“Okay,” Mike croaks and surreptitiously turns his hoarse-voiced reply into a dramatic yawn. He watches Harvey turn around and climb up the short flight of steps into the open and he’ll be damned if Harvey isn’t shaking his head and chuckling under his breath.

Mike quickly changes into a pair of faded jeans and a Henley and puts on some sneakers before he lets some water pour over his hands at the sink and runs his fingers to his still a little damp, tousled hair. One look in the small mirror tells him that he looks sleepy and flushed, even though he doesn’t get a sunburn easily anymore the climb unmistakably has left its traces. His muscles still feel sore so he stretches a little once he has climbed on deck and takes some deep breaths of the lush and fragrant evening air.

He can hear Harvey pottering around below the _Cassidy’s_ deck, clinking and cluttering, and when he inhales again, a mouth-watering smell hits his senses. Whatever Harvey is cooking over there, it smells absolutely delicious. Garlic, olive oil and some fresh herbs, and even though he isn’t a hundred percent sure Mike thinks he smells fish or seafood. His stomach growls and he suddenly realizes how incredibly hungry he is.

The table in the stern of the _Cassidy_ has already been set for two and Mike purses his lips. He quickly climbs back below deck and grabs a bottle from the shelf next to the sink before he steps off of the _Sundance_ and onto the _Cassidy_.

“Hey,” he calls out once he’s on board, alerting Harvey to his presence. 

“Hey,” Harvey echoes from inside and Mike can see him moving inside of the cabin through the open door. “Be at home!”

Mike smiles and takes a long look around, taking in the plates, the napkins and glasses, the silver fish cutlery, the bottle of wine in the cooler and the stack of books lying in one corner of the starboard bench. He lets his fingertips run over the smooth, polished surface of the table and reaches out to pick up the top book, a volume on southern European medieval architecture, castles and monasteries, but then he withdraws his hand again, glancing at the entrance to the cabin.

He walks around the table, knocks on the wooden door frame and waits until Harvey turns around, a towel thrown over his shoulder and steaming pots and pans in front of him on the stove, and grins. “What?”

“Permission to come aboard, Captain?” Mike asks, ducking his head a little to look further into the cabin.

“You already _are_ aboard,” Harvey replies, raising one eyebrow. “But yeah, permission granted. Come on in.”

Mike climbs down the stairs and takes a good look around the quite spacious cabin. It looks new, even though the boat has to be at least a couple of years old, so Mike guesses that the cabin’s interior must have been remodeled recently. 

Harvey’s glance follows Mike’s to the door in the back.

“Can I?” Mike asks and nods towards the door.

“Sure,” Harvey nods and turns back to the pots and pans, stirring something Mike can’t quite see.

Mike takes a look at the remaining areas of the boat, the guest bedroom and toilet, the storage area, the master bedroom. Harvey’s bedroom with the skylight and the bedside table with a glass of water and another neat stack of books on it, right next to a small notebook and a pencil. Harvey’s bed. Mike takes a deep breath and carefully touches the covers at the foot of the bed, letting his fingers run over the soft material. Harvey’s bed…

After having taken a quick look at the adjacent bathroom (a real one, with a small, yet proper shower), Mike returns to the main part of the cabin.

“She’s such a beautiful boat,” he says and Harvey turns around again briefly and nods.

“Yeah, she is.”

“You’ve had her long?”

“Couple of years,” Harvey says and reaches for a jar on the shelf next to the stove. “Bought her on a whim,” he adds, sprinkling something onto whatever it is that’s sizzling in the pan. “I saw her, lying at that pier, and a FOR SALE sign attached to that little window.” He points at one of the small slits close to the ceiling. “Saw her and I knew she was mine.”

“You always get what you want, huh?” Mike shoves his hands into the pocket of his jeans and tilts his head.

“Yeah,” Harvey replies and Mike can hear that he is grinning. “Always.” He turns off the gas under one of the pots and nods towards the entrance. “Why don’t you go outside and pour us a glass of wine? I’ll be ready in a second.”

Mike does as Harvey has asked him to do and then he sits down and leans back against the railing, taking a deep breath. This is such a beautiful, warm summer night and the Levanter is caressing the water’s surface with a gentle breeze. He closes his eyes and listens to the rippling water and Harvey’s movements below deck and he can feel a smile creeping onto his lips.

This is good. This is life.

“Hey,” Harvey says, startling Mike from his reverie as he walks up the stairs, carrying two plates in his hands and a baguette under his arm. “Don’t fall asleep again. This won’t keep.”

Mike opens his eyes and sits up. He stretches his back and cranes his neck. “Not falling asleep,” he replies and his smile broadens. “Too hungry for that.” 

“Here,” Harvey smiles and sets down one of the plates in front of Mike before sitting down himself. “I hope you like seafood.”

It’s a pasta-and-scampi dish, simple and delicious, and the wine they are sharing is one of the best Mike has ever had. Harvey keeps refilling their glasses and their conversation carries lightly on the evening breeze. They talk about movies again (they agree on almost everything), sports (not so much agreement there, but where would be the fun talking sports if there were agreement on everything?) and life in town, the history of the place and everything else under the sun. 

Harvey rises to carry the empty plates inside and Mike suddenly remembers the bottle he’s brought. 

“Shit,” he says, picking it up from where it is lying on the bench next to him and holding it out for Harvey. “I completely forgot.”

“Mike,” Harvey says, taking it from his hand. “You didn’t have to—“ He examines the bottle and takes a quick, deep breath. “Wow.” Looking up, he eyes Mike with a questioning look.

“Got it as a present,” Mike grins and tilts his head. Harvey looks really impressed and that is a pretty funny look on him. 

“Well,” Harvey says and looks at the bottle again, turning it over in his hands. “You might want to hold on to it then. It’s—“

“Ridiculously expensive?” Mike interrupts, still grinning.

“Very rare,” Harvey says, and when he looks up again, there is something in his eyes that Mike can’t quite place. “Special. You wouldn’t want to waste something like that.”

“I won’t waste it,” Mike says, the grin slowly fading from his face until only the faintest of smiles is left. He nods. “I won’t,” he repeats and Harvey’s eyes are so dark and deep that he feels as if he’s drowning in them for a moment. “I won’t.”

Harvey’s nod mirrors his and after a long moment of silence, Harvey breaks eye contact. “Well, in that case…” He disappears under deck again and returns with two tumblers. He uncorks the bottle and holds the stopper under his nose, inhaling deeply. “This should breathe a while,” he says and pours them both a glass. The amber liquid looks almost viscous as it settles in the tumblers, the surface evening out like the water of the sea in absolute calm. 

Mike stares at the glass for a while and when he looks up again, Harvey’s eyes are on him and Harvey is smiling. 

“Hey,” Mike says and lets his gaze travel over Harvey’s face and the dancing patterns the lights from the boats and surrounding buildings are painting on his skin. He can’t wait to retrace them with his fingertips and to paint some patterns of his own. “Want to go for a swim?”

Harvey turns his head, looks at the dark water surrounding them and frowns. “Here?”

“No,” Mike chuckles and nods in the vague direction of the Ocean Village building complex behind them. “In the pools.”

“What pools?” Harvey sounds as puzzled as he looks.

“See that large, flat building over there?” Mike points at several brightly lit shop windows lining up in front of the tall apartment buildings. 

Harvey’s eyes follow Mike’s fingers and he nods.

“They’re on the roof,” Mike explains, pointing at the complex again. “There’s a whole landscape of pools on that roof. For the residents of Ocean Village.”

“So how do we get in?” Harvey’s eyes search Mike’s and Mike smiles.

“I have a fob.”

“You have a _fob_ ,” Harvey echoes in question and the smile returns to his face.

“I have a fob,” Mike repeats, grinning. “It’s like a key. Or a key card. Small round thing, a bit like a fob watch. A _fob_.”

“How?”

“A year or so after I came here,” Mike says and nods towards the blue-ish building on the left end of the row of houses, “I moved into one of those apartments over there.”

“And you kept the key,” Harvey concludes. “The _fob_.”

“Yeah,” Mike nods and turns back to face Harvey again. “So? Wanna go? There’s a hot tub as well and a proper swimming pool if you want to swim lines and deck chairs and all.”

Mike can literally see how his suddenly refueled energy seeps over to Harvey. He rubs his hands over his thighs and smiles.

“Sure,” he says. “Why not?”

“Good!” Mike is on his feet almost immediately. “I’ll just grab a towel and some swimming trunks. See you in five!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Visual Aid #1](https://www.homeaway.co.uk/p8243716#&gid=1&pid=1)
> 
>  
> 
> [Visual Aid #2](https://twitter.com/CaroShearing/status/430033513505910785)


	4. Chapter 4

When Mike steps out from below deck, clad in a pair of boxers and his flip-flops, a towel thrown over his shoulder, Harvey is already waiting for him outside. He is honest-to-god wearing red swimming trunks and he grins as he pulls on both ends of the towel that is wrapped around his neck.

“Come on then, rookie,” he says, nodding in the direction of the pool rooftop. “Let’s go!”

Mike leads Harvey over to the little shopping mall and then up on the roof where the pool landscape lies in peaceful silence. The pools are still lit and Mike explains that they stay like that all night, which makes getting their bedrooms dark at night a little difficult for the Ocean Village apartments on the lower levels.

“I bet Roger and Victoria are in the Jacuzzi over there,” he says and points to the far left corner. “They love to take their night-cap there,” he says, grinning. “They’ve made some shady pool fob deal with some very shady residents, I think. But other than that it should be just us at this time of night.”

“Hmm,” Harvey makes, looking around slowly. 

There is the spacious swimming pool at the opposite end of the roof, and for a moment Mike thinks Harvey is going to head for that but then his eyes return to Mike and he tilts his head.

“So, which one is the best one to make out in then?”

Mike sputters and breaks into a throaty laugh. “Well, I hadn’t thought that far, to be honest.”

“Yes, you have,” Harvey grins and Mike can’t help but grin as well. 

“Yes, I have,” he admits, reaching for Harvey’s hand. “Come on then, follow me,” he says and starts walking towards the middle of the roof. 

They pass a hot tub and a shallow kid pool and several deck chairs arranged in small groups between palm trees in big terracotta flower tubs before they reach the biggest pool of them all. It’s curved and kind of shaped like a natural pond, and there is a bridge across the narrowest part and there is a small island with more palm trees on it in its middle. A broad flight of stairs leads into the glistening blue water and Mike heads right towards it.

“Come on, it’s warm,” he says and leads Harvey down the stairs and into the pool. Once the water has reaches his waist he lets go of Harvey’s hand and makes a dive. He takes a couple of strokes below the surface before he resurfaces again, shaking the water out of his hair. “Come on!”

Harvey follows him as he swims around the island. The moment Harvey rounds the little artificial peninsula Mike is on him and pushes him under water. Harvey’s body feels alive and warm under Mike’s hands and when Harvey resurfaces again and picks up the fight, the joyful laughter makes him almost swallow water.

Mike coughs and laughs at the same time, watching Harvey shoot to the surface again and blinking water from his eyes. Grinning, he leaps forward, and Mike’s back touches the artificial island’s edge.

Harvey’s arms come around him and he places his hands left and right from Mike on the edge, trapping Mike in between.

“Gotcha,” Harvey says, capturing Mike’s eyes with his. “No getting away now.”

Tiny droplets of water are glistening on Harvey’s lashes and a small rivulet runs down his temple and then his jaw and throat.

Mike swallows. “God, you’re beautiful,” he whispers hoarsely and carefully places his hands on Harvey’s upper arms. “I can’t wait to—“

Harvey’s mouth drinks the words that should have fallen from Mike’s lips after that and replaces them with small moans and shallow pants almost immediately. He kisses Mike like he means it, exploring and claiming, and only after a minute or so Mike is breathless and rock hard. 

“Yeah,” Harvey breathes into the kiss, catching Mike’s lower lips between his teeth and tugging playfully. “You too. And me neither.”

Mike’s hands find their way to Harvey’s hips and he pulls him close until he’s lined up flush against him, their bodies touching everywhere, chest, belly, groin, their legs entwined, and they’re both hard and Mike can feel how Harvey is pulsing against him, his cock twitching against Mike’s.

This is when Harvey’s right hand lets go of the pool’s edge and makes its way to Mike’s ass, cupping and squeezing it lightly and bringing their bodies even closer together – if that’s even possible. Harvey’s fingers dig into Mike’s ass cheek and then they find their way to Mike’s crack, traveling down that line through the thin cloth of his boxers, caressing and probing, and making Mike’s head spin with arousal and need.

“God,” he gasps into their wet, hungry kiss, and his hips jerk forward. “Oh god, oh fuck…”

For a moment, Harvey lets go of the pool’s edge completely and brings his left hand to the back of Mike’s head, threading his fingers into Mike’s wet hair. He breaks their kiss for a moment, locking gazes with Mike, and his lips are as red and well-kissed and swollen as Mike’s feel, tingling and thirsty for more, and his eyes are burning and Mike’s stomach drops and his heart misses a beat.

“I want you,” Harvey says, his voice raw with arousal and his words burning with desire. 

Mike only nods and Harvey crushes their mouths together again, swallowing Mike whole and alive, taking his breath away and making the spinning of his head even worse. “Yeah,” he says again, breathless and aching with want. “God yeah…”

Harvey grinds his hips against Mike’s and a bolt of arousal shoots through him so powerful like he has never felt one before. Mike thinks for a moment that if someone told him now that they had to stop, that Harvey couldn’t have him and that he couldn’t be with Harvey, that they had to stop now – he’d simply drown and stop existing, but then he laughs, he laughs against Harvey’s lips because who on earth would say something so ridiculous like that when this is inevitable, when this is a necessity and when there is absolutely no chance in heaven nor in hell that this is not going to happen. Mike laughs at the foolishness of his thoughts and he laughs because he’s high and giddy with joy and excitement and breathtakingly happy and he can’t wait for everything that is to come.

“What’s so funny?” Harvey mumbles against Mike’s lips, still claiming his mouth with every word he speaks. His fingers travel further down Mike’s crack and they push the fabric of the boxers deeper between Mike’s cheeks so they can almost, almost touch his hole.

“Nothing,” Mike pants and his cock hardens even further, throbbing against Harvey’s, and for a moment he has to close his eyes. When he opens them again, there are glistening pearls of water on Harvey’s flushed cheeks and the surrounding lights are glittering in them and this is for sure the most beautiful thing Mike has ever seen. “I—“ He kisses Harvey, just as deeply and as hungrily as Harvey has kissed him before, and when Harvey gasps, when he honest to god _gasps_ , and then the gasp turns into a moan, Mike laughs again. “I’m just so fucking happy,” he says, and Harvey touches their foreheads together and joins him in his laughter.

“I’ve waited for this,” Harvey says and takes a deep breath before he claims Mike’s lips again for a quick, open-mouthed kiss that is both a touch tough and at the same time incredibly careful. “I’ve waited for this for so long.”

Mike wants to say something in reply but then Harvey’s tongue is in his mouth again and Harvey’s fingers probe at Mike’s entrance and then his thoughts almost cease to be, and all he can do is moan and flex his hips and kiss Harvey back with everything he is. 

Harvey keeps touching him through the fabric of his boxers and he keeps moving against him and kissing him like that and it is maddening, truly maddening, and it somehow feels as if they can never be close enough and Mike grows desperate with the need to make that happen.

When Harvey’s hand finally slips past the elastic waistband of his boxers and touches his bare skin, it is as if white hot iron is touching him and Mike feels as if he is melting into that touch, and when Harvey’s fingertip brushes over the tight entrance to his body, his muscles tense and he moans. His body relaxes again and he pushes back against Harvey’s finger, dying to be filled, desperate and needy and so heady with the intensity of it all it makes his chest tighten. He can literally feel his body take over and he’s more than willing to let that happen. 

Harvey’s mouth is devouring him and he is happy to be destroyed, happy and relieved, and he wants to give in, he _wants_ to surrender, to let Harvey have everything he wants, everything Mike has and is. 

Harvey’s finger rubs over his hole gently and with a teasing note that almost drives Mike insane. He pushes back again but Harvey doesn’t let him for far too long. Only when Mike goes almost completely still against Harvey’s body, only then does Harvey push a little harder and he finally breaches Mike’s body with the very tip of his finger. 

“Relax,” he murmurs against Mike’s trembling lips and enters him a little deeper, pushing in carefully, little bit by little bit. “Relax for me. Let me in…”

Mike’s eyes squeeze shut and his lips open in a silent scream and Harvey’s mouth takes advantage of that, nibbling and kissing and biting, and all Mike can do is let it happen, let Harvey’s finger in and relax around him, feel Harvey’s rapid heartbeat against his own chest and inside of his tight channel, pulsing in time with Mike’s overwhelming longing.

A familiar feeling begins to unfold inside of Mike, his throat tightens, there is a tingle in his toes, his balls draw up and his breathing hitches. His palm is on Harvey’s chest before he knows it and his head is thrown back and he’s biting his lips and holding his breath for a moment before he brings their foreheads together again, his eyes still closed.

“Stop,” he whispers and his voice sounds rather alien to him. “Stop, please. Please. Not… Not like this.”

It takes Harvey a little time to catch his breath as well and he withdraws his finger from Mike’s ass and nods. Only a little later his hands come up to cup Mike’s face and he places a gentle, longing kiss on Mike’s burning lips. “Okay,” he murmurs, nodding again. “Okay…”

Mike can feel Harvey trembling with the effort to keep his hands off of him and he breathes a sigh of relief when Harvey brings a little distance between their bodies and the arousal vibrating through Harvey isn’t touching him anymore. 

“What do you want?” Harvey’s and his eyes meet once Mike’s eyelids flutter open and the warmth and longing with which Harvey looks at him almost sends Mike over the edge despite all of his efforts. Harvey’s thumb brushes over his lips and the tip of Mike’s tongue darts out, just touching it so very lightly, and Harvey hisses sharply and bites his lips for a moment so hard they turn into a thin white line.

“I want you to fuck me,” Mike answers and catches Harvey’s thumb between his teeth and bites down playfully. “I want you to come inside of me.”

“Fuck,” Harvey pants and closes his eyes again. “Fuck, Mike…” He kisses Mike, claiming his mouth once more, fucking his mouth with his tongue and then, from one second to the next, Harvey’s lips and tongue are gone and Harvey’s body is gone and his hands, and when Mike opens his eyes, Harvey is leaning against the island’s edge next to him, his arms resting on top of the edge and his eyes closed. He is breathing raggedly and as Mike watches him, a shiver runs through his body. It ignites the longing to touch deep within Mike again, kindles those embers that Mike now feels have always been smoldering inside of him.

He bites his lips and balls his hands into tight fists. How is he ever supposed to stop touching this man, to stop wanting him? He shifts a little and winces. The fabric of his boxers and the resistance of the water against his throbbing cock feel like fingers, almost like Harvey’s fingers, and Mike has to fight to keep his breath even and himself on this side of the abyss. “Shit,” he murmurs, shaking his head and chuckling hoarsely. “I think I need a minute.”

“Yeah,” Harvey sounds just as distraught as Mike feels. “Me too.”

“That,” Mike grins and turns his head to face Harvey, “was a very close call.”

“No shit,” Harvey grins back and the sparkle Mike sees in his eyes warms Mike’s heart. The broad grin slowly fades from Harvey’s face and the only word Mike has to describe the look that takes its place is _starving_. “I’m going to make you feel so good,” Harvey says and Mike has no doubt that Harvey can make him come with that voice alone. That one day he is going to do exactly that. 

Mike swallows and when Harvey reaches out to run his fingertips over his erect nipple, Mike inhales sharply. 

“Can’t wait,” Harvey adds and takes the small bud between his fingers, gently pinching it. 

“Oh god,” Mike moans, takes a deep breath and pushes himself away from the island. “Come on then,” he says over his shoulder, looking at Harvey. “Show me.”

He makes his way back to the stairs as quickly as possible, deliberate, even strokes, gritting his teeth against the tantalizing friction the water causes against his still rock hard cock. 

Harvey follows right behind and they get out of the water together, Harvey’s hand reaching for Mike’s ass again as soon as it’s visible above the surface, and Mike swats his hand away, grinning. 

They dry each other off quickly, laughing and kissing each other again and again, their hands touching wherever the towel has left almost dry skin behind, not able to keep their fingers off of each other. 

Mike staggers and Harvey steadies him, chuckling. “Shit,” Mike grins, “my knees are actually a little wobbly…” He catches Harvey staring at his crotch and when his eyes follow Harvey’s down there, his cock gives an eager twitch.

Harvey inhales sharply and the next moment they are both shaking their heads and laughing again, giddy like teenagers and humming with excitement.

“Come on,” Harvey says and swats Mike’s ass with his towel. 

“ _Hey!_ ” A surprised yelp escapes Mike’s mouth and he almost immediately retaliates, much to Harvey’s delight. 

“Come on,” Harvey says again and nods towards the marina. “Let me take you to bed…”

They quickly make their way along the roof and down the stairs. When they get back to the boat bridge where the _Cassidy_ and the _Sundance_ are tied up next to each other, hair still wet and the warm night air caressing their sensitive skin, Harvey stops and catches Mike’s arm.

“Your place or mine?” he grins but then he pulls Mike in for a slow, languid kiss that has Mike back to aching hardness and tingling palms in next to no time.

“Definitely yours,” Mike murmurs against Harvey’s lips. “We need a proper bed.”

“Okay, then,” Harvey smiles and lets go of Mike, nodding towards the _Cassidy_. “Let’s go.”

Mike feels giddy and light-headed as he climbs on board behind Harvey. His eyes travel up and down Harvey’s back and over his ass still clad in those tight, scarcely cut swimming trunks. Harvey’s thighs are toned and firm and Mike can’t wait to get his hands on Harvey’s perfect skin again. 

Harvey leads the way to the bedroom and holds the door open for Mike, his eyes following Mike as he walks past. 

Mike stops at the foot of the bed and turns around to find Harvey staring at him with wide eyes and slightly open lips. He watches how the tip of Harvey’s tongue darts out and runs over those lips, and a shiver runs through his body. Both he and Harvey open their mouths to speak at the same time and a second later they just stop and hold each other’s gazes.

Mike doesn’t know who moves first or dropping his towel, but the next thing he consciously notices is that he’s in Harvey’s arms and Harvey is fucking his mouth again with his delicious, vicious tongue. With a pang Mike becomes aware of his straining erection once more and the next moment Harvey’s fingers have traveled down his back and are inside of his still wet boxers and on his ass. They knead his cheeks and spread them apart, pulling Mike’s hole slightly open, and Mike moans into Harvey’s mouth, desperate for more.

“Please,” he whimpers, pushing his groin against Harvey in desperate need of friction, of anything, of more, just more, _please_ , and then Harvey has pushed down Mike’s boxers and he steps out of them as Harvey takes of his own trunks and not a second later Harvey has pulled him close again and finally, finally their cocks are touching between their naked bodies. 

Mike moans and then he holds his breath when Harvey’s hand sneaks between them and wraps around their cocks, squeezing them and rubbing them together. His thumb runs over Mike’s slit and it spreads the pre-come that has gathered there over both their crowns.

“You’re leaking,” Harvey murmurs and Mike stares down at Harvey’s hand, watching his thumb repeat the movement just as a little more of that clear liquid oozes from his slit. “God…”

“Yeah,” Mike says and he can feel himself blush. “Sorry, I—“ His breathing hitches in his throat when his cock releases another spurt and Harvey does it again. “I’m just so—You just make all… and I…” He falls silent and blushes even further as his cock twitches and strains in Harvey’s grip.

“Mike,” Harvey murmurs when Mike doesn’t say anything more. He lifts Mike’s chin with his other hand and searches his eyes. “Do you have any idea how much of a turn on that is? How hot that is? How hot _you_ are like this?”

“I—“ Before Mike can say anything else, Harvey has let go of their erections and dropped to his knees. Mike can’t tear his eyes away from that sight before him, Harvey on his knees, holding his cock in his hand and licking his lips. “Oh god,” Mike whispers. “Are you—“

Harvey opens his mouth and lets his tongue dart out. Mike can’t help but twitch in Harvey’s hand as the tip of Harvey’s tongue runs over his sensitive crown and he can feel himself blush an even deeper shade of red when more pre-come drizzles out and Harvey licks at it, licks it up and runs the tip of his tongue over his lips again.

“Hmmm,” Harvey hums and Mike pulls his lower lip between his teeth and bites down to keep himself from keening. His hips jerk and the moment Harvey’s lips close around him Mike knows he’s done. He knows he is not going to last and that coming in Harvey’s mouth is almost inevitable. 

“Harvey,” he moans as Harvey slowly, tantalizingly takes him in inch by inch. “Don’t…”

Harvey’s cheeks hollow and he sucks, cupping Mike’s balls with his other hand. They immediately respond and his sac tightens, his skin hot and tingling against Harvey’s palm. Harvey pulls away, his other hand wrapping around Mike’s wet cock, applying pressure where Harvey’s lips only just have taken it away. Harvey is so good at what he’s doing and Mike’s knees begin to tremble as the muscles in his thighs begin to tense.

“Oh god,” he moans and looks down again, and somehow his hand is in Harvey’s hair and maybe he shouldn’t grab that hair so tightly, but... “Oh fuck…”

Harvey takes him in again, using just the right amount of pressure and suction to make Mike’s toes curl. Harvey’s tongue presses against the underside of his cock, against that vein, and Harvey’s breath on his skin is driving him out of his mind.

“Harvey,” Mike manages to grit through his teeth, staving off the inevitable with every bit of strength and effort he can still muster. “If you keep doing that I’m going to come…”

And then, and it nearly makes Mike’s head explode, Harvey hums. He fucking _hums_ around Mike’s cock and the vibrations shoot through Mike’s whole body, claiming him and filling him, and he can feel his climax building behind his closed eyes and just for a moment he keeps trying to fight it but when Harvey hums around him again he surrenders.

“Oh fuck, Harvey…” He doesn’t even realize that he’s babbling as his climax rises and he throws his head back, fisting Harvey’s hair even tighter. “Oh fuck, you’re going to make me come, oh fuck, oh fuck, I’m going to come, fuck, gonna come…”

Harvey’s hold on his sac and around his cock tightens a little and Mike’s mouth opens in a silent scream as he comes helplessly down Harvey’s throat, emptying himself in spurt after spurt and he only barely realizes Harvey swallowing around him, humming, stroking, the force of his orgasm almost numbing him and at the same time making him hyper-alert to the sensations coursing through him and shaking him to his core. “Harvey, oh my god…”

Harvey lets him come down slowly, sucking and licking at his cock, caressing his inner thighs with gentle touches and murmuring sweet nothings and beautiful praise against Mike’s now sweaty skin. 

When Mike finally has caught his breath and looks down, his cock is still in Harvey’s hand and Harvey has the fingers of his other hand wrapped around his own erection, stroking himself slowly. 

“Did—“ Mike’s voice is so raw that he has to clear his throat and try again. “Did you want to make me pass out?” he asks, running his fingers through Harvey’s messy hair, smiling. “Because then I’ll have you know that you almost succeeded.”

Harvey smiles around Mike’s slightly softened cock and slowly lets go of him. “You needed that,” he says, looking up at Mike. “To take the edge off.”

“Yeah,” Mike replies and nods. He runs his fingers through Harvey’s hair once more, trying to smooth it a little. “Thank you.” He reaches out his hand and helps Harvey get back onto his feet. “Your turn,” he says and lowers himself down onto the bed, scoots up and holds his hand out for Harvey who is still standing there at the foot of the bed, looking at him.

“How do you want me?” Mike asks and stretches his hand out a little further.

“More than anything,” Harvey whispers and lets his eyes wander over Mike’s naked body. 

Mike blushes and spreads his legs a little, bending them at the knees. 

“I’m yours,” he says, and Harvey swallows and then he nods. 

“Yeah,” he breathes and climbs onto the bed between Mike’s spread legs. “You are.” He runs his hand down Mike’s thigh slowly, from the knee to his groin. “What do you want?” he adds, tilting his head and smiling.

“You,” Mike half hisses half moans as his cock twitches eagerly, hardening again under Harvey’s soft touch. “I want you to fuck me.” He lets his eyes wander along Harvey’s body and he can see that Harvey is still very aroused. And that he has a very beautiful cock. And that’s what he tells him.

“You really have such a beautiful cock,” he says and blushes even deeper once the words have left his mouth. He bites his lips and shakes his head in embarrassed amusement. “Sorry.”

“No need to apologize,” Harvey smiles, stroking Mike again. “I am glad that you approve.”

“Oh, I do approve,” Mike grins and catches Harvey’s hand in his. He rises to a half sitting position and places a gentle kiss on Harvey’s knuckles. “Very much so.” He runs the tip of his tongue along Harvey’s finger slowly, carefully, before he takes it into his mouth just as tantalizingly slowly.

Harvey inhales sharply and Mike can feel his eyes on him, can feel how Harvey is caressing him with his gaze just like he has done with his hand only a couple of seconds ago. He hums around Harvey’s finger and sucks a bit, but immediately relaxes his muscles again when Harvey makes a movement to withdraw it. His lips go slack around it as Harvey pulls out and when he pushes two of his fingers into Mike’s mouth only a moment later Mike feels embarrassingly close to whimpering. Not to mention to coming again. He licks and sucks at Harvey’s fingers, coating them with saliva and savoring Harvey’s taste at the same time. 

“I want to taste you,” he whispers when Harvey withdraws his fingers again, locking eyes with him. “I want to suck you off…”

“Yeah,” Harvey murmurs, nodding. “Later…” He places his hand on Mike’s chest and gently pushes. “Lie back.”

Mike lies down on the mattress again, taking a shaking breath. “I want you so much,” he breathes, closing his eyes as Harvey reaches between his legs and runs his spit-coated fingers down his crack. “God…”

“Hmmmmm,” Harvey hums, repeating that movement, and this time when his fingers brush over Mike’s hole, he presses down a little, stretching Mike’s muscles just the tiniest bit. “Can’t wait…”

Mike’s eyes fly open when Harvey nudges his entrance again, this time breaching his body with the tip of his fingers. “Where—“ His head moves to the left and then to the right, his eyes darting around the room frantically. “Where do you keep—“

“Drawer,” Harvey murmurs, his eyes still fixed on his fingers and his eyelashes throwing dark shades on his cheeks. “I’ll get them.” But contradictory to his words he keeps running his fingers over Mike’s hole over and over again and around it, pressing his thumb against the tight ring of muscle, and Mike thinks that it looks like as if he is biting his lips.

It takes Mike a few moments to realize that he is nearly constantly moaning, quietly but it’s there, under Harvey’s teasing caresses. “Sorry,” he murmurs and bites his lips. He just can feel that he is blushing again and he can’t remember the last time that happened. Both, that intense moaning and the constant blushing. “I don’t know what—This is just…”

“Yeah,” Harvey murmurs in reply and keeps up his ministrations, and somehow Mike knows that it’s okay, that everything is going to be okay. “I know…” 

Mike can’t help but arch his back a little, pushing back against Harvey’s probing fingers. When they breach Mike’s body once more, Mike moans again, trying to bite it back before it escapes his lips.

“God,” Harvey murmurs, pushing his middle finger in just to the first knuckle, and then he pauses. “You are so sensitive, I love that.” He almost withdraws again and pushes in once more. “Don’t hold back…” He tugs at Mike’s entrance a little, curling his finger ever so slightly. “So responsive... God, Mike… Don’t ever hold back…”

“Oh god,” Mike moans and throws his head back, his mouth open in a silent scream, when Harvey’s finger pushes deeper into him. “Oh my god…”

Harvey goes like that for a while, slow and easy, pulling his finger out and pushing it back in, brushing over Mike’s prostate every now and then and making Mike’s toes curl.

And Mike doesn’t hold back. He lets Harvey know exactly how much he enjoys what he is doing to him. 

Harvey takes his sweet time. After he has played with Mike’s hole like that for a while, he completely withdraws and goes back to teasing it again, running his fingers around it, stroking and probing, nudging it with one or both of his thumbs until Mike is thoroughly incoherent – and then he really starts opening Mike up. 

He retrieves condoms and a bottle of lube from the bedside drawer and coats his fingers generously with the clear gel before he brings his hand back between Mike’s legs.

Mike is torn between holding his breath and panting and when he doesn’t do the one he does the other, his skin sweaty already and his cock throbbing as if he hadn’t just come down Harvey’s throat less than half an hour ago.

He spreads his legs further, desperate to grant Harvey more access, and Harvey makes good use of that. He opens Mike up slowly and deliberately, stretching him with first one finger, then two, then three, until Mike is squirming under his touch, begging him to do something, to take him, to stop killing him or to do it properly, to finally, _finally_ do it properly. 

“Harvey,” he moans when Harvey still doesn’t stop. “Please…”

When Harvey looks up, his lips are red and swollen and his eyes are filled with wonder and admiration. They meet Mike’s and Mike’s heart skips a beat.

“God,” Harvey says and Mike can’t believe how hoarse his voice sounds. “You are amazing. I could do that forever.”

Mike just moans as Harvey’s fingers slip from his body and reaches his hand out for Harvey to touch him, to pull him close, to finally make him do something about his desperate need. “Please,” he whispers and for a couple of moments all he feels is Harvey’s eyes on him and the pulsing arousal in his very core.

Harvey seems to be frozen in time, looking at Mike with eyes that burn and consume him, and when he finally moves, when he finally leans down and scoops Mike up in his arms, Mike thinks he might actually die from this. Harvey’s scent, the touch of his skin and his hard cock against Mike’s thigh, his warmth and his taste, his tongue, his fingers, the sound of his breathing and his heartbeat, the rhythm of his blood pulsing through his veins, it’s too much, everything threatens to become too much, and all Mike can do is cling to Harvey and let him kiss him everywhere.

“Please, Harvey,” he mouths against Harvey’s throat, and Harvey nods.

“I want you so much,” he says and gently lays Mike back down. He reaches for the condoms and puts one on, his fingers and his cock trembling with need. A sharp hiss escapes his lips when he coats his cock with lube and he bites his lips, stroking himself once, twice before he stops and reaches between Mike’s legs again. His fingers tremble even more as he spreads more lube over Mike’s hole and then he is panting, too, as he positions himself. “God,” he whispers and draws a deep, shaky breath.

Harvey pushes forward slowly, only nudging against Mike’s entrance at first, and Mike’s throat constricts and the sound of his pulse is pounding in his ears.

Mike takes a deep breath as well and relaxes, willing Harvey to go on, to push further, to finally, finally claim him for good.

Harvey stays like that for some more moments, though, just pressing against Mike’s muscles and biting his lips, his fingers wrapped around the base of his cock, before he leans forward a little and breaches Mike’s body.

Mike gasps and his breathing hitches when Harvey enters him. Harvey is warm and hard and he is filling Mike inch by inch until he is fully sheathed in Mike’s tight heat. 

“Breathe,” Harvey whispers and that’s when Mike realizes that he must have been holding his breath for god knows how long. The air streams from his lungs in a long, keening moan and the way Harvey looks at him doesn’t help with the ever building desire that is raging inside of him one bit. Harvey looks as if he is burning up, burning up with want and need, he is shaking and he looks as if he has to devour Mike so they can both stay alive.

“Oh god,” Mike moans and Harvey closes his eyes. When Harvey lowers himself onto his elbows and brings his hands underneath Mike’s shoulder blades, their skin on their bellies and chests touches and Mike feels as if the heat Harvey is radiating is utterly consuming him. Mike’s cock is trapped between their bodies and it is so hard, so erect, and it is throbbing and leaking pre-come and when it twitches, Harvey flexes his hips and grinds down on it, but he’s also moving inside of Mike, and for a moment Mike thinks he might come again just like that, just from the sensation of Harvey filling him, but then Harvey leans down and captures his lips in a kiss so deep that Mike knows nothing anymore, a kiss so deep it takes all of Mike’s thoughts away. 

And then Harvey starts to move. He rolls his hips, withdrawing from Mike’s body a little and pushing back in with every maddening cycle, and Mike’s legs come up as if of their own accord and wrap around Harvey’s waist, pulling him even closer and even deeper into him.

They moan into their kiss and Harvey lifts Mike up a little, pulling him against his chest and holding him tight, and this is when Mike knows that Harvey is close, that neither of them is going to last much longer. 

Mike can feel the exact moment Harvey gives in and surrenders. For a couple of thrusts he still tries to hold back, to stave off the inevitable, but then his movements somehow change and he moans low in his throat. 

“Mike,” he moans, and then again _Mike_ , and the vibrations of his voice nearly tear Mike apart. With that one word he’s asking Mike if he is close, too, if he is right there with him, if he wants to come, wants to spill himself out for Harvey just like Harvey is dying to give himself to Mike. He’s asking Mike if he can come soon, if Mike will let him, and that is what breaks Mike. 

“Oh god,” he moans and he doesn’t even care if that is all he is saying for the rest of his life, over and over again. “Oh my god…”

Harvey’s breathing quickens even more and he stumbles over his breath and over the one syllable of Mike’s name, again and again, as if he were only just learning how to speak. And then he freezes and Mike freezes too and a warmth spreads through Mike’s body that fills him completely. Bright spots are dancing in front of his eyes and his cock twitches and grows even harder between their bellies and he can feel Harvey tense even more and swell inside of him and then there is nothing else but blinding, all-consuming release.

His cock jerks and spurts of hot, sticky come cover their skin, and Harvey must have started to move again, because there is friction and it is so delicious that for a moment Mike feels as if he might black, but then Harvey’s mouth is on his and Harvey is emptying himself inside of Mike and Harvey’s fingers dig into the muscles of his shoulders so hard it hurts and it’s the best feeling Mike has ever experienced, ever. 

Mike doesn’t know how long their climax lasts but it feels like eons. When he finally comes down, his whole body tingles and he is so aware of every cell of his body it makes his eyes water. And that is just him and that’s nothing compared to the sensation of Harvey’s skin on his. 

Harvey is panting, his forehead rested against Mike’s and his eyes squeezed shut tightly. Another shiver runs through him, his hips thrust into Mike shallowly and Mike can feel Harvey’s cock give another twitch inside of him. Harvey’s hands reach up to cup Mike’s face and Harvey’s thumbs brush over his cheeks, running through the sweat that has pooled on his skin. Harvey shakes his head slowly, his eyes still closed but his breathing slowly evening out. When he makes a movement to pull out, Mike tightens the hold of his legs around his body and inhales sharply. The hiss turns into a moan when Harvey follows his movement and tries to push further into Mike again.

“Mike,” Harvey whispers after a few moments of complete stillness, his cock softening inside of Mike’s body. “Mike, I have to…”

Mike shakes his head again but then he nods, letting his legs fall from around Harvey’s waist. They feel heavy yet at the same time it feels as if they don’t weigh a thing.

Harvey rolls off of Mike and onto his back. He quickly disposes of the condom and pulls Mike into is arms and half on top him.

Closing his eyes, Mike lets out a long, slow breath, his heart beating in his ribcage almost in sync with Harvey’s. He closes his eyes and inhales. His hand comes to rest on Harvey’s belly and Harvey’s skin is warm and sticky against his palm. His fingers splay out and he turns his head a little to place a quick kiss onto Harvey’s collar bone.

Harvey’s fingers trace soft patterns on Mike’s arm and Mike can feel Harvey smile into his hair.

They fall asleep within seconds. 

When Mike comes to again, Harvey is standing at the foot of the bed, smiling down at him, his head slightly tilted and his hair an incredible mess. He’s stark naked and he’s holding a tumbler with some amber liquid in one hand and a washcloth in the other one. Mike sits up slowly and blinks when Harvey hands both the glass and the cloth to him.

“Have—“ Mike clears his throat and tries again. “Have you been outside like that?”

“Yeah,” Harvey grins and Mike shakes his head in disbelief. “Didn’t want this to go to waste…” He nods at the glass in Mike’s hand his grin broadens.

“Wish I had seen that…” Mike takes a careful sip from the glass and smacks his lips. “Wow,” he says and takes another one. “That shit really is good.”

“You don’t say,” Harvey mocks and snatches the glass from Mike’s hand. “Told you you might want to hold on to it.” He brings the glass to his lips and takes a drink as well while Mike cleans himself, wiping the dried come stains off of his skin. His fingers brush over his skin in the cloth’s wake and a shiver runs through him. He looks down at his groin and finds his cock half hard again. He can feel Harvey’s eyes follow his and his cock twitches under his gaze.

“Are you—“ Harvey swallows and their eyes meet for a quick moment before Mike looks down again.

“Yeah,” he marvels and when he raises his head once more, there is a slightly sheepish grin on his face. “Are you up for another round?”

“Always,” Harvey grins and sets the tumbler down onto the bedside table. “Always, Mike…”


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [[Some visual aids for this chapter...](http://sal-si-puedes.tumblr.com/post/158280138731/all-pics-by-me-please-do-not-repost-so) :D]

They wake up together to the sunlight streaming in through the skylight right above the bed. Or rather, Mike wakes up first, loosely wrapped in Harvey’s arms with Harvey spooned up behind him. Harvey is breathing evenly and the air that streams from his slightly open mouth travels down Mike’s spine and straight to his groin. He can feel himself harden again and he wiggles his hips a little, adjusting his position, only to find a similar hardness nudging against his cleft. Mike bites back a moan and closes his eyes again, willing his erection to go down. He should give Harvey a little more time to sleep, he suspects that Harvey doesn’t get to sleep in like this very often, but his body has other things in mind. His cock rises to full hardness in just a couple of heartbeats and to keep still Mike bites his lips so hard it hurts. 

When Harvey’s arms around him tighten their hold a little, a short pant falls from Mike’s lips and he can’t help but listening to it turning into a moan there at the end. Harvey’s hips roll slowly, almost surreptitiously, once, twice, and for a moment Mike isn’t sure if Harvey is still asleep or if he has already woken up. Harvey’s hips keep rolling, easing into a slow, lazy rhythm, and when Harvey noses at the nape of his neck, nuzzling his sensitive and thirsty skin, Mike knows Harvey is awake.

“Oh god,” Mike moans as Harvey continues to fuck against his backside with slow, languid thrusts. 

Harvey’s other hand comes around Mike and wraps around his cock and once again Mike is done for. 

“Fuck,” he hisses and his hips buck, fucking into Harvey’s hand. He’s already leaking and the way Harvey’s tongue doing wicked things to his hairline isn’t exactly helping.

“I want to be inside you,” Harvey murmurs and his words send shiver after shiver through Mike’s whole being. Harvey’s fingers find his cleft and brush over his hole. “I want to come inside of you, I—“

“Yes,” Mike moans, pushing back against Harvey’s fingers. “Yes, I want that, too…”

Harvey’s thrusts become faster just like his breathing becomes more irregular and sprinkled with moans. His hand around Mike’s cock speeds up its strokes and it doesn’t take long until Mike is emptying himself over Harvey’s hand and Harvey is spurting his release against Mike’s ass and the small of his back, his fingers still inside of Mike.

“Holy crap,” Mike pants when they are done coming and he can form words again. He turns around in Harvey’s arms and smiles. “You are incredible.”

“Not so bad yourself,” Harvey smiles back and cups the back of Mike’s head. They kiss for a while, slow and easy, and when they finally break apart again, they are still smiling. The twinkle in Harvey’s eyes is even more beautiful than the sunlight.

“So,” Harvey says, running his palm down Mike’s arm. “What are your plans for today?”

“I have a tour at three p.m.,” Mike answers, letting his fingers find Harvey’s nipple. He traces its outlines gently and marvels at the goose-bumps that rise in his fingers’ wake. The small bud hardens under Mike’s touch and he can’t help but lean in and quickly touch it with the tip of his tongue. “Other than that, I’m free. Wanna come with?”

“Rock tour?” Harvey asks and Mike nods, grinning. 

“Yeah. By car, this time. I have a spare seat and I might take you on free of charge.”

“Sure,” Harvey smiles. “Why not? If it’s free of charge…” He sits up and ruffles Mike’s hair. “What about breakfast in this place?”

“I want to go for a quick swim first,” Mike says, sitting up as well. “To wake up properly.” He grins. “Care to join me?”

They clean each other off in Harvey’s shower before they leave, leathering each other with soap and then rinsing the foam off, making the last traces of this morning and last night disappear. Once they are dry and dressed in their swimming trunks again, they grab a couple of towels and head for the pools where they chose the proper swimming pool this time and really swim lines for something close to half an hour.

After that, Mike takes Harvey to Oasis, a little café just off Main Street, where they have breakfast and very, very good coffee. When they’re finished, Harvey says he needs to work for a bit so they return to the marina. Harvey settles into the stern of the Cassidy with his laptop and Mike heads back into town to shop for some new hiking equipment to replace some of his old and then he walks across the border to La Linea to get the van for the afternoon tour. 

The meeting point for the tour is Grand Casemates Square and Harvey is already waiting there for Mike with three other members of the group when Mike arrives. Harvey is wearing a pair of faded jeans and a light grey polo shirt and there’s that off white sweater around his shoulders again and those sun glasses, just like on the first day. He looks so good Mike’s knees actually go weak for a moment.

Mike introduces himself to the other man, Patrick, and to the two women, Jennifer and Monica, Canadians, who are part of his group and they have to wait for a couple of minutes for the last two members, a couple from Wales, Lisa and Toni, to join them.

While they’re waiting Harvey steps up to Mike, takes off his sunglasses and leans in. “I missed you,” he whispers into Mike’s ear, and his breath raises goose bumps on Mike’s skin. “I hope you’re free tonight…” He casually brushes along Mike’s arm with his knuckles, the sunglasses still in his hand. “I have plans for us.”

Mike’s cock’s response is immediate while his brain seems to freeze for a couple of seconds. “Umm,” he mumbles and shifts his position, clearing his throat. “Shit.”

“Shit?”

“You’re making me hard,” Mike whispers and clenches his jaws when Harvey’s gaze darts to his crotch. “Stop teasing me. I need to concentrate.”

“No, you don’t,” Harvey deadpans, stepping a little closer. “You know the whole tour by heart.”

“I—“ Mike swallows as his cock twitches in his pants. “I’m going to be driving.” 

“Okay,” Harvey says and reestablishes what might pass for professional distance between them. “I don’t want you to be a threat to all of our safety.”

“You are a threat to _my_ safety,” Mike murmurs, grinning. He surreptitiously adjusts himself and looks around. “Hey,” he greets the two people approaching them. “You must be Lisa and Toni. I’m Mike and I’ll be your guide today. Welcome to Gib! The van’s parked this way.”

They start with a short tour of the city, the marinas and Line Wall Road and then the Moorish Castle, the mosque is next and then Mike drives them up the Rock where they meet the apes, Mike luring them with little treats he keeps producing from the pockets of his jacket. Everyone is thrilled by the animals and Mike takes pictures of everyone except Harvey with an ape sitting on their shoulder. 

Their next stop are the Great Siege and World War II Tunnels and Harvey learns that the whole rock is hollowed out by a system of natural caves and artificial tunnels, and that it’s pretty much a Swiss cheese on its inside. The rock has been used as refuge and as a hospital and the view from the loopholes that have been carved into the rock’s shell remind everyone how small the peninsula actually is. 

The drive to the entrance of St. Michael’s Cave is short and Mike only has to wave at the woman behind the counter, Anita, and she lets the group pass with a welcoming smile and an upbeat “Bueeeenoooo” on her lips. The air inside the rock is cool and moist and Mike ushers his group along the narrow corridors until they enter the big, greenish lit limestone cave. The others don’t even notice when Harvey pulls Mike behind a small natural protrusion near the entrance to the cave.

“Don’t you want to look at the cave?” Mike asks when Harvey gently pushes him against the stone wall behind him. 

“I want to look at _you_ ,” Harvey says and licks his lips. “Do you have any idea how sexy you are, telling all those stories? Do have any idea how fucking hot you are in those jeans?”

He pulls Mike in for a greedy, passionate kiss that leaves both of them breathless. It seems to Mike as if his life consists of nothing more but of those kisses, earth-shattering, those soul-destroying kisses he and Harvey share.

“And that makes me not just want to look at you,” Harvey murmurs against Mike’s lips, his hands traveling down Mike’s sides. “It makes me want to fuck your brains out.”

“Shit.”

Mike’s hips jerk of their own accord, bringing his and Harvey’s clothes-clad growing erections together.

“Now?”

“Yeah,” Harvey moans into their kiss and continues to claim Mike’s mouth. “Now…”

Mike feels dizzy, Harvey is leaving him no air to breathe. “Fuck…”

“Come on,” Harvey urges and turns Mike around in his arms so he’s facing the rocky surface of the cave’s wall. “They won’t notice.”

“Shit,” Mike hisses again when Harvey reaches around his waist and undoes the buttons of his jeans. “You’re not really going to… Ahhh…”

“No,” Harvey mouths against the nape of Mike’s neck, shoving his hand into Mike’s pants and grinding his groin against Mike’s ass. “But I want to…”

“God, yes…” Harvey’s fingers close around Mike’s cock and Mike’s hip jerk again. “Please…”

“Shhh,” Harvey whispers and runs his tongue along Mike’s hairline again like he did this morning, and Mike can feel himself melting under Harvey’s caress. “Quiet… Let me touch you, just a bit…”

“Fuck!”

Harvey jerks him once, twice, and on the third stroke Mike can already feel an orgasm threatening to build inside of him.

“Stop…” His whole body goes rigid and he bites the insides of his cheeks so hard he tastes blood. His cock swells in Harvey’s grip and he moans. “Stop, stop, stopstop _stop_ …”

Harvey lets go of him and holds him close against his chest while he calms down again a little. “Told you that one day I’d make you come in your pants, didn’t I? Think it’ll be today? Now?” Harvey is panting, too, and the obvious signs of his arousal are not much help, really, they are such a turn-on that Mike has to squeeze his eyes shut tightly against the onslaught of corresponding arousal they awake inside of him.

“God,” he pants when Harvey finally dares to redo his buttons. He leans forward against the wall, his forearm braced against the rock and tries to steady his breath. “God, Harvey…”

“Yeah…”

Harvey sounds ridiculously breathless and disheveled. “Can’t wait to get my hands on you properly back on the boat…”

“Okay,” Mike draws a deep breath and straightens his clothing a bit. “Okay. I think we can go back now.”

They join the group in the great cave and Mike tells them about the concerts that are held here regularly and what the acoustics of the cave do for the music. Jennifer asks if there will be a concert during their stay and if Mike could organize tickets for her, Monica and Patrick, and Mike reassures them that the tickets for Thursday will be ready for them to pick up at the reception of their hotel by tomorrow morning. 

The last stop on their tour is at the Pillars of Hercules. Mike tells his group about the myths surrounding the Rock, the Strait and the “pillars” – the Labors of Hercules, about Atlas and Atlantis, the words that were once believed to have been written here, on this pillar, as a warning to the sailors to not venture any further than this because beyond there lies nothing. _Non plus ultra._

“When Hercules separated the two mountain ranges, petrified Atlas’s shoulders, with just a single swing of his club and then pushed them apart to make way for himself on his mission to obtain the cattle of Geryon, he created the Strait of Gibraltar. This, the Rock of Gibraltar, is one of Atlas’s shoulders, or one of the Pillars of Hercules. The corresponding pillar is believed to have been, or rather to be, either Monte Hacho in the Spanish exclave of Ceuta in Northern Africa just about there,” he points at a dark shape in the far distance across the Strait, “or Jebel Musa,” his index finger moves to a mountain further to the right, “in Morocco. Personally, I think it’s Jebel Musa,” he finishes his speech with a grin on his lips and tells Jenny and the others that they will have another couple of minutes to enjoy the vista and to snap some pictures before they head back into town and should they want him to take some of them together he’d be happy to do that, of course. 

Mike stands at the railing guarding the platform around the monument and looks over the Strait when Harvey steps up next to him. It’s a view that never gets old for him and he takes a deep breath and exhales slowly, letting his eyes wander along the distant coast line.

“I want to see the other one,” Harvey says, putting on his sunglasses. He moves a little towards Mike so their arms almost touch. “The other pillar. I want to go see it.”

“What?” Mike blinks. His stomach drops at Harvey’s words, and he hopes that he heard wrong, that Harvey isn’t asking what he thinks he’s asking.

“I want to see Jebel Musa. With you. We can take the _Cassidy_ and—“

“Whoa, wait!” Mike can feel panic rising in his chest and he takes a quick step backwards. “You want to sail across the Strait?”

“Yeah,” Harvey grins and nods, searching Mike’s eyes. “I want to. With you. It’ll be fun.” 

Mike steels himself and forces a smile onto his face. Harvey is right, he tells himself, it can be fun. He knows that it can be fun and if Harvey really wants this he can very well get over himself give it a try, for him. “That’s a bold plan, sailor,” he says, tilting his head and narrowing his eyes. His voice wavers a little and he inwardly curses himself for that. He nods towards the sculpture of the pillars. “I mean, it can be done, of course, and I have done it before, but it’s not the easiest sail. The waters of the Strait can be quite temperamental and... _Non plus ultra_ , remember?”

“Yeah, _plus ultra_. With you.” Harvey turns around and leans backwards against the railing, propping his elbows up on it. He crosses his legs at the ankles and the sunlight is doing brilliant things with his hair, things so beautiful they make Mike’s chest constrict. “At least think about it,” Harvey adds, smiling that radiant smile of his that never fails to warm Mike’s soul. It’s the most reassuring, the most grounding thing he has ever seen and he can feel its effect in his very core. 

Mike nods and fishes the keys to the van from his pocket, swallowing against the persistent nervous flutter in his stomach and the stale taste in his mouth. He can do this.

“Time to leave,” he says, his voice almost as firm as he wants it to be, and begins to gather the others and usher them into the car. 

They say their goodbyes where they started off a couple of hours ago, at Grand Casemates Square, and both Jenny and her crew and Lisa and Toni hand Mike an envelope with the tour’s fees and in both cases a quite generous tip. 

“Thank you, Mike,” Jenny says. “You really are the best.”

Mike grins and he and Harvey watch them trail off towards Main Street for some late afternoon shopping. 

“You’re a great guide,” Harvey says, slipping his arm around Mike’s waist and pulling him close. “The best.”

“Hmmm,” Mike hums against Harvey’s lips. “How about _I_ cook for _you_ tonight? You’d have to let me use your kitchen though, of course. Mine’s… kinda desolate.”

“My boat is your boat,” Harvey murmurs, grinning, as he cups Mike’s face and places an almost chaste kiss onto his lips. “So what’s for dinner tonight?”

“That,” Mike grins and disentangles himself from Harvey’s arms, “is going to be a surprise.” He runs his hand down Harvey’s arms and smiles. “I’ll have to do some shopping first, but that’s not going to be a problem with me being recently so generously cashed up.” He holds up the envelopes and shakes them lightly in front of Harvey’s eyes. “See you later?”

“Later,” Harvey smiles back and nods. “Can’t wait.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Mike teases, looking back over his shoulder as he walks back to the van. “Always greedy for my food.” 

Harvey just raises his eyebrows and adjusts his sunglasses and Mike hums happily under his breath the whole time he’s in the supermarket, roaming the aisles, that slight jitter still stirring in his stomach as he chooses the ingredients for their dinner. He could always cook something else, he thinks, running through the recipe in his mind. Something different. Or he could make this and not say anything, just a normal dinner, nothing special. Biting his lips, he pauses for a short moment, weighing the carton he has just taken from the shelf in his hand. He could make rice instead or pasta, he thinks, and Harvey wouldn’t be any the wiser. Maybe he should, maybe he should just forget about the whole thing, the whole stupid idea.

But then, when he lets his eyes flutter shut, he sees Harvey’s face and the playful glitter in his eyes as he closes in and brushes his lips against Mike’s. The lights in the supermarket are far too bright when Mike opens his eyes again, but the sense of determination he had been feeling when he left Harvey earlier is back. He can do this. He places the carton into his cart and quickly makes for the checkout.

The next quick stops are at the fish monger’s and at a small shop that sells wines and liquors before he drops off everything at Harvey’s and drives across the border to return the van back in La Linea. 

Harvey is working again when Mike comes back to the marina. He’s sitting on one of the benches, his legs stretched out along it and his laptop in his lap.

“Hey,” he says and looks up when Mike walks up to the _Cassidy_. “Come aboard.”

“May I?” Mike asks and nods towards the entrance to the cabin. 

“Of course. Always. Be at home.”

 _Home._ The sound and the warmth that swing in that single word tell Mike that he has made the right decision. And it’s time. It is goddamn time to get over it, to finally get over it and move on. He wants to.

_Plus ultra._

_Home._

Mike takes the bags from the fridge and looks around to check out the kitchen and the equipment. Just like he had assumed, it’s equipped perfectly and there is nothing left to be desired. He starts by putting some of the food back in the fridge and taking two wine glasses from one of the cupboards above the sink. He opens one of the bottles he has brought with him and pours them both a drink before he stores the other bottles and the one he has just opened away as well.

Walking up the short flight of stairs he can feel a smile spreading on his face. He actually can’t wait to see Harvey again and as soon as he catches sight of him, the smile practically explodes on his face. “Here,” he says and hands the glass to Harvey, who looks up from his laptop with a little delay, blinking a couple of times before he reaches for the drink Mike is offering to him.

“Sorry,” he says, looking at the pale yellow liquid inside of the glass. “Are you trying to get me drunk?”

“Yep,” Mike grins and holds his own glass out so they can clink them together. “Cheers.”

“Cheers,” Harvey echoes and they both take a sip, smacking their lips, and then Harvey nods. “Good. This is good.”

“Hmmhmm,” Mike agrees and takes another sip. “Yeah.”

“Need any help?” Harvey cranes his neck a little, trying to catch a look under deck.

“Nah,” Mike shakes his head and bows down to cup Harvey’s cheek and catch his lips in a quick, teasing kiss. “I’m good.”

“Okay,” Harvey says, already a little absentminded again, bringing his glass to his lips once more, and returns his attention back to his laptop’s screen. “Call me if you need anything.”

Mike climbs back below deck and starts his dinner preparations. The task of going through the recipe, touching and sampling the ingredients and transforming them into something that smells great and tastes pretty good calms Mike’s nerves and helps him regroup. He loves to cook even though he only very rarely does it anymore and he’s glad to find out that he isn’t completely out of practice. Harvey is going to like this. 

When he climbs out of the cabin again after a little over half an hour, plates and cutlery in his hands, Harvey is deeply immersed in his work and it looks as if he has barely touched his glass after Mike has brought it to him.

“Hmm,” Mike says and Harvey startles, but the look on his face immediately turns into a smile. “I don’t think my plan is working.” He nods towards the screen. “Making progress?”

“Yeah,” Harvey says and stretches his back. He picks up his glass and takes a small sip of wine. “How long till dinner?”

“Quarter of an hour or so,” Mike says and plucks the glass from Harvey’s hand. “I’ll get you a fresh one.”

*****

Fifteen minutes later dinner is ready and Mike climbs up the stairs with two bowls and a cork screw in his hands and another bottle of wine tucked underneath his arm. 

“It’s couscous,” he says as he sets down the bottle and the bowls. “With chicken, seafood and vegs. Lots of cinnamon. And a yoghurt-saffron-sauce with lime juice.”

Harvey closes the lid of his laptop and moves to sit at the table properly. “Hmmm,” he hums, taking a deep breath. “Smells amazing.”

“I thought we’d practice a bit,” Mike says and hands Harvey the bottle and the cork screw. “Get in the mood.”

“Practice?” Harvey frowns as he opens the wine and Mike nods when Harvey looks up again and starts to fill both of their glasses. “In the mood for what?”

Mike takes a quick breath and straightens his back before he replies. He hopes that Harvey doesn’t notice.

“For Morocco.”

This is for Harvey, it’s something he wants and Mike won’t back down from giving it to him. He can do this.

Harvey’s face splits into a grin brighter than the rising moon above the marina. “Plus ultra?”

“Plus ultra,” Mike nods determinedly and raises his glass to a toast.


	6. Chapter 6

“My father died three months ago,” Harvey whispers into the darkness of the cabin. Mike is cuddled up at his side, his fingers tracing patterns on Harvey’s chest. They stop for moment but then they resume their caress again. 

Mike’s skin is still tingling and his body is still buzzing with a climax that has shook both him and Harvey to their cores mere minutes ago. 

“Heart attack. I didn’t see it coming.”

Harvey catches Mike’s hand in his and brings it to his lips. “I was so caught up in my projects, we were taking part in five important competitions at the same time and I hadn’t seen him in weeks and… And then, one afternoon, I got the call. He was gone.” Harvey pauses for a short moment, drawing a deep breath. “I miss him.”

“Yeah,” Mike whispers, catching Harvey’s leg between his. “I know.” He has told Harvey about his parents’ accident and how he was left an orphan at the age of eleven the other day at the tapas bar, about how his grandmother raised him and how she passed away two years ago as well, the only family he had left. He knows that Harvey remembers. “It’s never going to go away, not really.”

“I stayed in New York for another three months until all the presentations were ready and then… then I couldn’t take it anymore. Had the _Cassidy_ brought over to Europe and just left.”

“You could just leave? Just like that?”

“Left Louis in charge, my deputy,” Harvey nods and kisses Mike’s knuckles. “He can be a dick sometimes, but he knows how to keep things going, how to lead the team and how to win. And I can work from remote, at least for a while.”

“Hmm,” Mike murmurs and turns his head to kiss Harvey’s chest. “I’ve seen that. You look good when you work. I like watching you work.”

“At first I had… a couple of friends with me. Scottie and Stephen,” he adds. “I—I was with her when we took off in San Remo. After two weeks on the boat she was with him.”

“Oh,” Mike doesn’t know what else to say. “I’m sorry.”

“Yeah,” Harvey says after a short pause. “I walked in on them one day and… I didn’t say anything, I just looked at them and went outside again. Then they left. Together.”

“They left you alone with the boat?”

“Yeah, in Malaga. At first I wasn’t sure I could sail it on my own, but then I thought _fuck it_ and decided to give it a try and that landed me here. In Gib.”

“You got marooned,” Mike says, propping himself up on one elbow. 

Harvey nods. “Yeah. Marooned in Malaga.”

“What a bitch move!” Mike frowns and shakes his head.

All of a sudden Harvey breaks into a laugh and pulls Mike down again, half on top of him, just like it should be. “Yeah, you could say that. Come here and console me, then…”

“Hey,” Mike grins and captures Harvey’s mouth in a quick kiss. “I’m not a consolation price!”

“No,” Harvey pulls Mike even closer and deepens the kiss. Mike can feel Harvey hardening again against his thigh and he can’t believe that he is getting hard again himself. “You’re not.”

Mike is still loose from their last round and once Mike has put a condom on him and lubed him up a bit, Harvey slides into him easily as Mike lowers himself down, taking in Harvey’s length in one swift movement.

“Oh god,” Mike moans and bends down to kiss Harvey again. “How is this even possible?”

“Fuck,” Harvey hisses and arches his back to draw Mike even further inside. “God, you feel so fucking good…”

Mike rises to a sitting position, straightening his back and grinding down against Harvey’s groin, and Harvey’s hands grab hold of Mike’s hips. He is so deep inside of Mike that Mike can feel him everywhere.

“I—“ Mike swallows and his breathing hitches when Harvey rolls his hips and thrusts up even deeper into him. “I want to come again…” He grabs hold of his own cock and begins to stroke himself in sync with Harvey’s quickening thrusts. “I want to…”

“Yeah,” Harvey urges him on. “Yeah, Mike… Come on, _come on_ …”

He comes just a short time later, spilling himself over his fingers and coating Harvey’s chest with white strands of semen. They look beautiful on Harvey’s slightly tanned, sweaty skin and Mike can’t help but run his fingers through them and bring his fingers to his mouth. He opens his lips and takes them inside and the moment he closes his lips around them is the exact moment Harvey loses it and tumbles over the edge as well, coming deep inside of Mike, Mike’s name a panted moan on his lips, a sound that Mike kisses away straight from the source.

Mike collapses onto Harvey and Harvey slips from Mike’s body, replacing his cock with his fingers almost immediately. He fingers Mike through another peak, weaker this time and with a slower burn and Mike himself is surprised when he comes again between their stomachs, Harvey’s lips hot against his throat.

Later, when they have cleaned each other off again in the shower and Harvey has opened the skylight to let in some fresh air, Mike curls up against his side again.

“We need a day to prep for the sail,” he says, peppering Harvey’s chest with kisses. “At least. Two would be better. And then we have to see if the conditions are right, the weather, the winds and currents. We won’t do it if the conditions aren’t right or if they are unstable. No way.” 

“Okay,” Harvey says, tightening his hold on Mike. “But we don’t have to do it at all if you… if you think it’s a bad idea.”

“No,” Mike says and shakes his head. Harvey’s chest hair tickles his cheek and he can’t help but smile a little. “Like I said, of course it can be done, even though it’s a tricky body of water to navigate. No problem. It’s just… I haven’t crossed it by boat in a while and, like I said, the waters round here can be tricky.”

“Want to tell me about the last time?” Harvey smiles back and Mike shakes his head again.

“No,” he says quickly, his chest tightening almost painfully, and thankfully Harvey just nods. 

“Okay. Let’s take those two days then to get ready,” he says and Mike closes his eyes.

*****

Mike spends the next morning cancelling his tours for most of the next week and making inquiries regarding their trip. The weather should hold, he hears (and reads), good, strong winds with a tendency to freshen up a little every once in a while, and the satellite maps in the Cassidy’s navigation system are all up to date, not that he’d expected anything else. 

In the evening, over a delicious fish dinner, he tells Harvey about the several hurdles to overcome when navigating the Strait. The wind and the currents, both funneled by the narrow passage, and, of course, the heavy ship traffic.

“Over two hundred ships pass through the Strait every day,” he explains, taking a sip of wine from his glass. “They keep to well-defined shipping lines, so we pretty much do know where they will be – but we still have to make our way between them and not get caught up in the currents too bad.”

“Hmmhmm,” Harvey nods around a mouthful of food. He’s listening intently and Mike is glad that he is. As easy as it can be to cross the Strait if the conditions are good, as tricky and hazardous it can become when the visibility turns poor or the weather changes unexpectedly. 

“We might have to make it a night sail so we can catch the tide and take advantage of that brief window of westerly winds,” Mike goes on, scooping up the last bits of fish with his fork. “Plus, it’s easier to cross the Traffic Separation Schemes at night. Less traffic there during the night – what we’ll have to watch out for though are the Spanish fishing boats, they can be quite a challenge. Looks like a night sail at the moment, but then we get to have breakfast in Africa,” he grins and brings the fork to his mouth. “Not bad, either.” He finishes his food and takes another swallow from his glass to wash it down. “Tangier is an approved port of entrance,” he explains. “We can sail there. It’s a longer sail, of course, about six, maybe six and a half hours, give or take, and it’s farther away from Jebel Musa but I prefer it over Marina Smir or Ceuta.”

“Tangier,” Harvey repeats, a small smile playing around his lips. “Sounds great. Exciting. Exotic.”

It’s intoxicating, really, to see Harvey so happy and excited and it certainly makes up for Mike’s elevated heartbeat and slightly sweaty palms.

“We can rent a car there and drive along the coast to Jebel Musa. Tangier is beautiful, I bet you’re going to love it. But… we will have to be more careful, though, when we’re over there,” Mike says, searching for Harvey’s eyes. “They usually let it slide when it’s tourists, but we shouldn’t…”

“I understand,” Harvey says and pulls his wallet from his pocket. “And I promise to behave, even though it will be a challenge.” He grins and drops a couple of bank notes onto the table. “You’re too tempting.”

“Wanna go for a night cap at _Charlie’s_ or take me home and see how much I can tempt you right now?” Mike grins back, wiggling his eyebrows.

Harvey hesitates for a moment and then he says something Mike hasn’t been expecting.

“ _Charlie’s_. I’m in the mood for a drink.”

He pushes his chair back and rises, looking down at a slightly bewildered Mike. “You coming?” And with that, he walks away.

“Okay,” Mike says slowly before he rises as well and follows Harvey out onto the street. 

Outside, Harvey immediately reaches for Mike’s hand and takes it in his. The walk to _Charlie’s_ is not long, maybe eight minutes, ten if you take your time, but all the way Harvey does that thing with his thumb that drives Mike positively insane. So when they arrive there and walk up to the bar to order their drinks, Mike is more than half hard and rather ready to drag Harvey back to the boats and into his bed.

“Two glasses of scotch, please,” Harvey orders and turns around so he’s facing Mike, leaning against the counter, his chest terribly close to Mike’s arm. He leans in closer and licks his lips. “How many times…,” he casually says, close to Mike’s ear. He’s speaking with a lowered voice but not so low that if anyone was standing next to them they couldn’t hear him.

Mike startles when Harvey stops in the middle of the sentence and licks his lips again.

“How many times do you think you can come in one night?”

Mike just swallows and blushes under Harvey’s scrutinizing gaze. 

“I think I’m going to try for three times tonight, maybe four,” Harvey goes on and Mike shifts his stance. He is hard now, he really is, and Harvey’s words so close to his ear aren’t exactly helping with his condition. “Do you think you can do that?”

“Shit,” Mike hisses as Harvey’s nose brushes against his temple and Harvey’s knuckles surreptitiously brush against his groin. “Are you trying to kill me?”

“Hmmm,” Harvey hums and withdraws a little when the bar keeper sets two glasses down in front of them. “Thanks,” he smiles at the man behind the counter, and Mike blushes even more. He’s just glad that the barkeeper is someone new – he’d probably die if it were Jimmy.

“I… I don’t know. Maybe?”

“Do you think he knows?” Harvey asks and picks up his glass, nodding towards the bar keeper who has turned his back towards them talking to other patrons. “Do you think he knows that you’re going to come three times for me tonight? Do you think he has an idea how hard you are? How beautiful you look when you come?”

Mike clears his throat and takes a long swallow from his drink. “If you keep that up he just might,” he murmurs around the rim of the glass before he takes another swig. 

Harvey chuckles.

“Fuck, you’re such a tease! That’s why you wanted to come here,” Mike says slowly and Harvey’s smile broadens. “You wanted to tease me. In public.” There are enough people among the patrons who know Mike, and Mike is sure that their little show will earn him more than just one amused raised eyebrow when he meets them in town the next time. He can practically hear the teasing and the laughs already.

“Clever, aren’t we?” Harvey’s eyes are twinkling with mischief and burning with desire. It’s a weird, yet incredibly appealing and arousing look on him and Mike’s throat constricts when Harvey’s gaze intensifies. “I can’t wait to fuck you,” he adds after a short pause. “God, you look so tempting…”

Mike swallows and his breathing catches in his throat when Harvey shifts and reaches for the small of his back to pull him closer. Mike can feel exactly how hard Harvey is and his own cock twitches in response. Kyle and Harold at the other end of the bar are already nudging each other and grinning. Harold winks at Mike and gives him a thumbs up behind Harvey’s back. Stupid fuckers.

Mike rolls his hips the tiniest bit and now it’s Harvey’s time to gasp. “What are we waiting for, then?”

Taking a deep breath, Harvey withdraws and fishes a bank note from the pocket of his pants. He drops it onto the counter, nods at the bartender, grabs a tight hold of Mike’s wrist and heads for the door. Once they’re outside, he pauses. He turns around and pulls Mike close, almost flush against him, and takes a deep breath. His lips brush over Mike’s like the lightest summer breeze and Mike’s stomach lurches. 

Mike has to close his eyes for a moment, he simply has to, even though Harvey hasn’t kissed him properly yet. When Harvey’s forehead comes to rest against his, he bites his lips.

“You’re all I want,” Harvey murmurs, and Mike can feel how the heat radiating from Harvey’s body and face seeps into him and fills him to the brim. “There’s nothing else.”

“Nothing else,” Mike echoes, his eyes still closed and his wrist still clasped in Harvey’s hand. 

“No,” Mike can feel Harvey shaking his head and then a soft kiss is placed on his lips. “Come.”

His arm finds his way around Harvey’s waist with a naturalness that makes Mike’s head swim, and Harvey’s arm around him is the only thing that keeps him steady. Pressed tightly against each other, they walk back to their berths and, more than once, their deliberately slow breathing turns into small, huffed moans. The night air is soft and warm and when they climb aboard the _Cassidy_ , the rippling of the waves sounds like music.

They undress each other slowly, pulling the other close whenever they can, devouring kisses stealing their breath away. Mike is covered in gooseflesh when they’re naked, their clothes pooling at their feet, but it’s not because he’s cold. It’s because his whole body is singing with Harvey’s touch. 

When Mike lowers himself onto the bed and pulls Harvey onto the mattress with him, Harvey stills. He looks down on Mike, half standing, half kneeling between Mike’s legs, and he smiles. His hand finds its way to Mike’s face and it cups his jaw with infinite care, as if it was holding something incredibly precious.

“Mike,” Harvey says and this one word sends a long, languid shiver through Mike’s whole body.

“Yeah…” Mike swallows against the tightness in his throat and his breathing hitches. He holds Harvey’s gaze as he tries to pull him closer again, and this time Harvey complies. 

He lowers himself on top of Mike and for a while they just kiss and touch each other, their straining cocks caught between their dancing bodies, their legs entwined and their hearts beating in erratic sync. They touch each other everywhere they can reach and let their tongues explore each other’s bodies thoroughly as well, travelling over hot, vibrating skin, the plains and the vales, the shadows and the light. 

Mike’s entire being is humming with arousal and need and he can feel that Harvey is just the same. Time slows down when they finally break apart and Harvey’s eyes find Mike’s.

He holds Mike’s gaze for the longest time and their ragged breathing is louder than a thunderstorm. Harvey’s lips are dark and swollen and his eyes are dilated with want. As if in slow motion he lowers his head and claims Mike’s mouth in another deep, hungry kiss. And then he rolls onto his back and pulls Mike on top of him, Mike’s legs falling into the space between Harvey’s.

Mike doesn’t remember how he got there and when but the next moment he’s kneeling between Harvey’s legs, his hands resting on his thighs, and his pulse pounding in his ears. He stares at Harvey’s crack and his eyes follow the inside of Harvey’s leg up to the knee and back again to Harvey’s groin. Harvey’s cock is as dark as his lips and it’s straining against his stomach, full and heavy and pulsing with arousal.

As if out of nowhere, a hand appears in his line of vision and it takes Mike a moment to realize that it is Harvey’s hand and that it is holding something out to him. A wrapped condom and the tube of lubricant.

And Harvey just lies there as if it were nothing, nodding at Mike with a small smile on his face and spreading his legs a little more.

Mike swallows. He wants this, he wants Harvey more than anything, and his mind is racing with all the possibilities of being with him. His eyes start to swim and he has to blink several times and to shake his head to make himself focus. He takes the condom from Harvey’s hand and places it on the mattress next to them. His fingers tremble a bit as he opens the tube and coats them with the clear, cool gel. He tests the texture between his fingers and frowns a little before he looks up again.

“I don’t want to hurt you. I want to make you feel good.”

“You already are,” Harvey whispers and spreads his legs a little further, exposing himself to Mike even more. “Prepare me. Open me up.”

Harvey is so beautiful like this, so open, so trusting, and for a moment Mike has to close his eyes. Again. Again Harvey is just too much.

“I..” He clears his throat and swallows again. He can feel himself blush. “I’ve never done this before, I mean this way round.”

“Well,” Harvey grins and reaches for Mike’s arm. He pulls Mike close, almost on top of him, and Mike’s lube-covered hand is caught between their bodies. “Then it’s about time, I’d say.” He claims Mike’s mouth in a claiming kiss and thrusts his hips up against Mike’s. “Do you want to?” he murmurs against Mike’s tingling lips. “Hmmm?”

“Hell, yes,” Mike pants, eyes wide and smiling, and sits back up and on his heels. “You have no idea how much…”

“Good.” 

This one word, the way Harvey says it, pierces Mike’s innermost core and goes straight to his cock at the same time. Nothing has the right to feel that intense, and for a moment Mike thinks he might come right there and then. “Oh god,” he whispers and picks up the lube again. “I don’t know if I’ll last long enough. You’re so fucking tempting…” He squeezes another dollop onto his fingers and lets it drop onto the mattress.

Harvey nods and Mike reaches out. When his fingers touch Harvey’s entrance, Mike bites his lips and Harvey moans. Mike spreads the lube along Harvey’s crack generously and adds some more just in case. His fingers run over Harvey’s hole again and again, gently circling it, pressing against the tight muscle playfully, and every time he touches Harvey there, Harvey makes the most delicious sounds in the world. His hisses and moans and breathless curses are music in Mike’s ears and it takes him a while to realize that he’s singing along with Harvey, moaning quietly himself, almost constantly, his free hand wrapped around his cock, stroking it slowly.

Playing with Harvey like that, caressing him there, is fascinating and arousing. Again and again Mike has to squeeze the base of his cock or to stop touching himself altogether lest he tumbles over the edge. Then finally, finally, he breaches Harvey’s body with one finger and _oh my god_ —

Mike holds his breath as he pushes into Harvey, watching mesmerized how Harvey takes him in.

Harvey’s muscles tighten around his finger and Mike releases his breath in a long, low moan. 

“God, you’re so tight…”

He pushes in further and curls his finger a little, and Harvey’s hips jerk, drawing him in even deeper. 

“Oh my god…”

He takes his time to work Harvey open, and by the time he has two fingers inside of him, Harvey’s hands are fisting into the fabric of the sheets so hard his knuckles have turned white. Mike looks up and finds Harvey with his head thrown back and his eyes squeezed shut tightly, his mouth half open and his chest and throat glistening with a layer of sweat.

Harvey’s cock is rock hard and it’s throbbing with Harvey’s heartbeat, and when Mike pushes in deeper and curls his fingers once more, it twitches against Harvey’s belly and a thin stream of clear liquid seeps from its tip. Mike lets go of his own cock and reaches out to touch.

“God, you’re amazing,” he rasps, taking hold of Harvey and running his thumb over Harvey’s crown. Harvey swells even more in his grip and Mike does it again. “So fucking beautiful…”

Two fingers become three and Mike is grateful that Harvey lets him have his way and take this time. Fingering Harvey open, stretching him like this is one of the most intimate things Mike has ever experienced, if not the most intimate. Harvey is warm and tight and he opens up to Mike so beautifully, it makes Mike’s eyes water. So when Mike thinks Harvey is ready, he withdraws his fingers and wipes his eyes with the back of his hand before he cleans his fingers against the sheets and reaches for the condom. He almost comes when he rolls it over his cock and his breathing is hoarse and ragged when he’s done.

“Ready?” He brushes his fingers over Harvey’s entrance once more and positions himself. He nudges against it with the tip of his cock and watches in awe as Harvey’s body yields to him and takes him in bit by bit. When he’s completely buried in Harvey’s tight heat, Harvey does something incredible.

He cups Mike’s ass with his hands and draws him even deeper inside. His hands travel up Mike’s back and he wraps his legs around Mike’s in a way that ties them together closer than Mike has ever felt to anyone in his life.

Mike lowers his head and captures Harvey’s mouth in a deep, lingering kiss. When his cock twitches inside of Harvey, he gasps and his gasp turns into a moan when Harvey’s body tightens around him.

“Move,” Harvey whispers against Mike’s lips, letting his tongue dart out and run over them teasingly. “I want you to move…”

“If I move I’m going to come,” Mike moans and his hips roll once, just a shallow movement that Mike has no control over, but it feels so good it hurts. 

“Move,” Harvey says again and does that thing again where he gets so tight it’s almost impossible to bear. “Mike…”

Harvey’s cock is hot and hard and sticky between their bodies and it jerks so beautifully when Mike catches Harvey’s lower lip between his lips and pulls a little. After that, Mike is powerless against the needs of his body and he surrenders to its taking over. His body moves. He moves. He can already feel his orgasm building after just a few thrusts and he knows Harvey is close as well.

His whole body is shaking with built up arousal and it feels as if his heart and mind are on fire. Even if he wanted to he wouldn’t be able to stop this, this endless spiraling ascent and the tidal wave of heat that is pushing him closer and closer to the edge. He tries to reach between them and take hold of Harvey’s cock again but his body won’t let him. His fingers keep digging into the muscles of Harvey’s arms and Harvey keeps murmuring something, Mike isn’t sure what. But Harvey’s voice urges him on and guides him to where they both so desperately need to be.

Harvey’s hand worms its way between them and he begins to jerk himself off with quick erratic strokes, and suddenly Mike is able to make out one word, a single word falling from Harvey’s lips directly into his soul.

“Mike.”

Mike only comes once this night but it’s the most intense orgasm he has ever felt.


	7. Chapter 7

Mike has an early tour the following day and after he finishes it and says goodbye to his group on Casemates Square, he pays a visit to _Sheppard’s_. He wants to change two ropes on the _Cassidy_ he isn’t satisfied with the condition of, and he needs to buy a second set of forehead lamps, since it’s definitely going to be a night sail now. He takes a deep breath and opens the door.

“Hey, Stuey,” he greets the man behind the counter when he walks into the chandlery, putting as much cheer and upbeat normalcy into his voice as he can.

“Yo, Mike,” Stu grins and mimics a salute. “What’s up?”

Mike walks over to the shelf with the rope coils and picks out two of them. He walks over to the counter and puts them down in front of Stu. “Forty feet of this and thirty of this one, please,” he says, pointing at the coils respectively. “And I need a forehead lamp. Waterproof.” This is easier than he thought and maybe, maybe he can really do this.

“Fixing someone’s boat again, eh?” Stu walks around the counter and makes for the back of the shop. He returns only moments later with a large plastic box in his hands. “That guy you’ve been _snogging_ on Parliament Lane the other day? He’s a hottie. Heard you had some fun at _Charlie’s_ as well last night… So it’s for him? For his boat? The Moody?”

Mike can feel how he blushes and how his mouth curls into an exceptionally broad smile at the same time.

“Maybe.”

“Hehe,” Stu grins and nudges Mike’s arm with his elbow before he sets down the box on the counter. “Really, you two must have put on quite the performance at _Charlie’s_ last night. Dex said everyone in there was expecting you guys to strip each other naked and fuck on the bar, but then apparently you left.”

“Oh, shut up,” Mike laughs and helps Stu undo the clasps on the box and open the lid. “It wasn’t that bad.”

“Not according to Dex,” Stu grins and takes out a forehead lamp. “He said the air was basically bristling with the UST. Way to go, buddy.”

“I said shut up,” Mike tries to sound grumpy but the huge smile still playing on his face betrays him, he knows that. “And Dex is an idiot.”

“That’s true,” Stu says and hands Mike another lamp. “Doesn’t mean he isn’t right.”

Mike weighs the two lamps in his hands for a moment and checks the labels before he hands one back to Stu and puts the other one on the counter next to the coils.

“Good choice,” Stu says and closes the lid again. He heaves the box off the counter and carries it back to its shelf.

Mike helps Stu measure and cut the ropes he asked for and when Stu bags them and the lamp and Mike hands him his debit card, Stu tilts his head.

“Guy leaving again already?”

“No,” Mike says and clears his throat. “Going to sail to Tangier tonight.”

“ _Alone?_ There isn’t anyone with him?”

“No, there isn’t. And no, he isn’t going to do that alone. _I’m_ going with him.”

“You _what_?”

Stu looks truly taken aback and Mike tries his best to avoid his searching eyes. His stomach lurches and Stu’s question keeps ringing in his ears. _You what? You what??_

_Shut up_ , Mike thinks. _Shut up, shut up, shut up._

“I’m going with him, to Tangier.”

“Mike.” Stu gives Mike his card back and sighs. “Are you sure about that? That this is a good idea?”

“Yeah,” Mike says, trying to sound as casual as possible. “Yeah, I’m sure.”

Stu looks at him in silence for a long time and stares at him in a way that makes Mike feel uncomfortable than nervous. “Look, Stu, I know what I’m doing. I can do this. I _want_ to do this. It’s time.”

“Okay, bud,” Stu says and smiles at Mike. His smile looks forced though and concern is literally dripping from his voice. “You got it bad, I get that. But be careful. Watch out. Don’t do it if gets too much. Be careful.”

“Always am, Stuey,” Mike shoves his wallet into the back pocket of his jeans and grabs the bag with his purchases. “Always am.” He tips his imaginary cap and heads for the door. “Bye, Stuey.”

“Bye, Mike. See you around.”

“Yeah…” Before the door is completely open, Mike stops and turns around, his hand still on the handle. “Wait,” he says and walks back to the counter. “There’s one more thing.”

*****

Harvey is gone when Mike returns to the marina which gives Mike time to change those ropes and check the weather report one more time. The conditions are still pretty good at the moment and Mike takes a deep breath before he looks up from his cell phone’s screen. 

There’s a deep pit in his stomach and the block of ice sitting in the middle of it is as heavy as a stone and its edges are sharp as razors. He looks around and inhales again, deeply, trying to calm his nerves.

He can do this, he has done it before, many times, and it’s no big deal, not really. It’s a routine sail or at least that’s what it used to be to him, earlier. And it’s what Harvey wants so it’s what they’re going to do.

“Hey.”

Mike startles. He hasn’t heard Harvey coming aboard and climbing down the stairs so he is already almost next to him when Mike notices.

“Sorry,” Harvey smiles and pulls Mike into his arms. “Didn’t mean to startle you.” He cups Mike’s jaw and tilts his head. “Something wrong?”

“Nah.” Mike shakes his head and forces his lips into a smile. “Everything’s okay. We should have pretty good conditions tonight. And I’ve changed the ropes I mentioned yesterday? Stuey from the chandlery sends his regards.”

“Hmmm,” Harvey leans in and brushes his lips over Mike’s. “Does he?”

“Yeah…” Mike drinks in Harvey’s scent and Harvey’s arms around him make the ice in his stomach melt a little. “Apparently we’re a hot topic.”

Harvey chuckles. “Yeah, you are a pretty hot topic…” He slides his hand along the small of Mike’s back underneath the waistband of Mike’s jeans. “A _very_ hot one, if you ask me.”

Mike buries his face against the curve of Harvey’s throat and takes a long, deep breath.

Harvey’s other hand finds its way into Mike’s hair and Harvey hums low in his throat. He holds Mike like that for a while before he breaks their embrace and takes a step backwards, searching for Mike’s eyes. 

“But seriously. We don’t have to do this if you’re not sure about it. Or we could take the ferry.”

“No,” Mike sniffles surreptitiously and shakes his head. He breaks eye contact for a moment and when he looks back at Harvey, he smiles. “I want to. It’s okay. Really.”

“Okay,” Harvey says and places a soft kiss on Mike’s lips. “Let’s have dinner before we leave. Can’t have the captain be hungry at sea, right?”

“Right,” Mike grins. “How about _Charlie’s_? Maybe without putting on that much of a show this time?”

“Fair enough,” Harvey laughs and turns to climb up the stairs again, but Mike catches him by his arm.

“Wait,” he says and fishes for something in the front pocket of his pants. “I got something for you. I mean, I know you already have one, of course you do, but… Here.” He hands Harvey a small velvety pouch.

Inside the pouch is an old-fashioned compass in the style of a fob watch and when he takes it out it looks heartbreakingly good in Harvey’s palm.

“Mike,” Harvey says slowly, turns it around in his hand and opens it. “This is beautiful. Thank you.”

“There…” Mike clears his throat and his cheeks heat up. “There is an inscription. In the lid. On the inside.”

_Plus Ultra_

“I was thinking about putting my name, too,” Mike says, frowning. “But then I thought maybe better not.”

“I’d like it if you put your name,” Harvey says, looking up and locking eyes with Mike again. “Maybe we can have it added when we’re back in a couple of days, what do you think?”

“Hmmhmm,” Mike nods slowly, and Harvey’s smile broadens. “Yeah, we can do that.”

“Come here.”

Harvey takes Mike into his arms again and kisses him once more.

“When are we going to leave?”

“Eleven, eleven thirty maybe? Like I said, breakfast in Africa.”

“Can’t wait,” Harvey grins and lets go of Mike. “But dinner first. Come on.”

*****

Mike orders steak with fries and veggies and forces himself to eat most of it, too, because Harvey is right, he needs to eat before their trip, and Harvey is right there, on the other side of the table, watching him. But the food doesn’t taste as good as it usually does and he can still feel it in his stomach when they walk back to their berths. He feels both worn-out and on edge and he almost pulls away when Harvey takes hold of his hand.

“Wanna take a little nap before we leave?” Harvey asks and pulls Mike on board of the _Cassidy_ with him. “We still have time…”

Mike shakes his head. “Don’t think I can sleep,” he says and shoves his hands in his pockets, looking at Harvey who looks ready to go below deck. For the first time in a long time he feels like going for a run, maybe run around the entire rock even. “Do you play chess?”

Harvey nods and Mike gets his chess board from the _Sundance_ and they even sit down in the stern and set up the pieces but after the second or third move Mike gets up and walks around to Harvey’s side of the table. He scoots onto the bench next to him and worms his way between Harvey’s legs. Leaning back against Harvey’s chest, he sighs.

Harvey’s arms wrap around him and Harvey’s lips brush down his neck. “Hmmm,” he hums and a warm shiver runs down Mike’s spine.

Mike closes his eyes.

“I got my first baseball bat when I wasn’t even four,” Harvey murmurs, the vibrations of his voice pouring through Mike like warm honey. “My dad gave it to me, brought it with him one day when he came home, quite out of the blue, no birthday or anything. It was a kid’s bat but it was way too heavy for me and at first, when I tried to swing it, it’d make me topple over.”

Mike chuckles and snuggles closer against Harvey’s chest. “Gravity,” he whispers. “Balance.”

“Exactly. A lot to master for a little guy.”

“I wish I could have seen you like that,” Mike smiles into the falling darkness. “Little dude with the big bat.”

“I can show you pictures one day, if you like. My dad took thousands and my mother did, too. There are some with my dad and me ‘playing’.” Harvey tightens his arms around Mike and nuzzles into his hair. “My dad used to throw balls at me for hours and I’d maybe hit two? If at all.”

Mike chuckles again and is rewarded with a kiss to his temple. Harvey’s lips are warm and soft and gentle, and Mike sighs. He can feel how his body slowly relaxes.

“And then you joined Little League,” he muses and Harvey nods.

“Yeah. I tried out for Minor League at six and was accepted on my first try.”

“You’ve always been an exception, then?”

“Hmmm,” Harvey hums, brushing his kips gently along Mike’s throat. “I don’t know about that, but yeah, they admitted me one year early. Then Little League. And then up. Pitcher. It was such a thing for me and my dad, and later my brother as well. Always on the field, always at games.”

There are a few moments of silence after that and Mike turns his head up and to the side to capture Harvey’s lips for a slow, lazy kiss.

When they break apart, Mike’s cheeks are flushed with warmth.

“I hit 0.385 in high school,” Harvey says and Mike inhales sharply.

“Wow,” he says and he can feel Harvey tense briefly. “You could have gone pro.”

“I wanted to,” Harvey says softly and takes a deep breath. He holds his breath for a moment and then he exhales again, slowly, steadily. “I was going to. But then… Just one bad pitch fucked up my shoulder for good. No state championship, no career in baseball, no nothing.”

“Shit,” Mike whispers and tries to turn around in Harvey’s arms but Harvey holds him firmly in place. “I’m so sorry.”

“It was my fault,” Harvey says. “My shoulder had been hurting for days. I knew I should have sat that one out, and my coach definitely would have made me had I told him. But I didn’t. I knew there would be agents present at that game and scouts, and I… I said nothing. I pitched through the pain and then… one awfully loud plop and everything was over. Torn bicep tendon. I’ve never been in that much pain in all my life. Both physically and...”

Mike is surprised to feel Harvey chuckle in his back. Again, he tries to turn around and this time, Harvey lets him. Harvey’s face looks peaceful, almost serene, and he’s smiling at Mike, and there’s a hint of nostalgia in that smile that makes Mike’s chest constrict.

“I’m sorry, Harvey,” he says, and Harvey nods and places a quick, gentle kiss on Mike’s lips. 

“It was a long time ago,” Harvey says and leans back again. He pulls Mike close against his chest once more. “I was devastated back then. Thought that my life was over. Didn’t want to go to any games anymore, ever again. Threw my bat away, even. But my dad and Marcus were having none of that. They rescued the bat from the garbage bin and they kept dragging me to games and now I go with Marcus and his kids whenever I get the chance. We practice in the park, just like my dad and I did when I was a kid. Just because I can’t play professionally anymore, doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy it.”

“You bounced back,” Mike murmurs and he can feel Harvey nod. 

“Yeah, in a way I did. I bounced elsewhere.”

“Your dad sounds amazing…”

“He was,” Harvey kisses into Mike’s hair and when he’s done he ruffles it playfully. “Ready to set sails now, Captain?” Harvey smiles and turns Mike’s head around to kiss him once more. “I’m getting a little hungry for breakfast.”

“Ready,” Mike nods. “Come on, let’s do this.”


	8. Chapter 8

The weather conditions are almost exactly as predicted when they set sail. Fair winds, strong but not too strong, and the currents seem as predictable as they can be as well. Every now and then the cloud cover breaks and the velvet night skies become visible with stars sparkling down on the water and the pale hue of the moon lights up the reflecting stripes on Harvey’s and Mike’s life vests.

During the first two or three hours they don’t even need to switch on their forehead lamps, but then the clouds thicken and the winds freshen up a notch. The _Cassidy’s_ speed increases, her sails billowing in the wind, and she dips to the side quite a bit, sea spray splashing up and turning Mike and Harvey’s faces wet. 

Mike mans the helm for the longest time, the collar of his anorak turned up against the wind and the spray and his fingers stiff from holding on to the polished wood of the wheel. He needs to piss but he doesn’t want to let go of the wheel, not yet, and his jaws clench so hard his muscles hurt.

“Let me take over for a bit,” Harvey steps up behind Mike and wraps his arms around him. “You need a break.”

“Nah, I’m good,” Mike grits through his teeth, tightening his hold around the wooden wheel. The boat shoots over the crest of a wave and Mike’s stomach lurches. “See that you find something to hold on to!” He has to raise his voice against the sound of the wind and the waves in his ears. “Or go below deck. I can handle this.”

Harvey moves to let go of him but when Mike shivers, he tightens his embrace again. “You should really take a break, you’ve been doing this for over four hours. I can take over for a bit. Why don’t you let me – and you go inside for a moment and take a leak.”

“No.” Mike shakes his head and stiffens. He really needs to go but he’d rather piss his pants than do what Harvey suggested. “Hold this for a minute.” He guides Harvey’s hand to the wheel and nods. “Hold on tight. The winds are really pretty strong and you don’t want it to slip out of your grip.”

“It’s not my first sail,” Harvey says and takes the rudder over from Mike. “I can do this.”

Mike’s eyes never leave Harvey as he moves over to the railing and opens his zipper. They should probably abase the sails and continue by motor. He relieves himself and tucks himself back in again as quickly as he can. Stretching his back, he wipes his hands against his thighs and turns around again to take over his position at the helm but he trips over something, his own feet probably, and nearly falls.

Harvey catches him by the arm just in time and holds him upright.

“Hey! Careful there.”

Harvey runs his palm down Mike’s arm and smiles. The Cassidy takes another dive over another wave and Mike can feel all blood drain from his face.

“Careful, the boom!” he yells against the wind, almost shoving Harvey out of the way. “Shit, we should abate the sails, go by motor. This is—“

“Mike,” Harvey tries to cut in, a hint of annoyance swinging in his voice. “You’re overreacting. It’s not that bad, really, and there’s no need to yell. So calm down and—“

“For fuck’s sake,” Mike hisses and bats Harvey’s hand away. “Hold the fuck on.”

Harvey frowns and tries to protest when Mike shoves him aside for real this time and takes the wheel back into his own hands, but Mike is having none of that.

“Hold on to the goddamn railing,” he spits and stares straight ahead into the darkness. “Get the sails down. We need to get them down now. Fuck it, Harvey,” Mike’s voice hitches and breaks but there is nothing he can do against that. “I told you to hold the fuck on to something.”

“Hey,” Harvey says, his voice just barely carrying over the noise in Mike’s ears. “Calm down. I’m all right. It’s all right.”

“Fuck,” Mike curses under his breath and wipes his mouth with the back of his hand. There is a bitter taste on his tongue and his vision is getting blurry. He feels as if he’s going to throw up. “Shit.”

“Mike, what’s going on?” Harvey lets go of the railing and takes a step towards Mike. “What—“

“I said fucking hold on, didn’t you hear me?” Mike’s throat feels incredibly sore and saliva begins to pool in his mouth. He swallows thickly, again and again, and takes long shuddering breaths in between.

“Mike,” Harvey tries again and Mike wishes he just could knock him out. “Why don’t you let me take over for a moment and go insi—“

“ _No_ ,” Mike shouts and his whole body starts to tremble. “I said _no_ , goddammit! I’m not leaving you alone out here. No fucking way. I’m not. You hear me? I’m not letting that happen, not again!”

“Mike, you’re not making any sense.” Harvey is trying to talk calmly to him now, steadily, Mike can practically hear the patience swinging in his words and the pity. His voice still wavers, though, thick with concern. “What are you talking about?”

“Trevor, okay?” Mike realizes that he is yelling, but he doesn’t care. The block of ice inside of him fills his whole body now, and his skin feels as if it is hanging off of his limbs in shreds. “I’m talking about Trevor!”

“Mike, what—“

“He _died_ , okay? He fucking _died_ and I—“ He wipes his eyes furiously, squeezing them shut as tightly as he can. “It was _my_ fault, everything. I left him alone and he—“ Mike chokes on his words and coughs. He coughs and coughs until his throat and chest are burning and he thinks he’s going to pass out. 

Harvey is saying something to him but he doesn’t understand what it is. He can see Harvey’s lips moving, but there is no sound. Everything is deadly silent but for that shrill ringing in his ears that’s even more painful than the tightness in his chest.

Mike half-stumbles, half-falls against the railing and the boat does one of those leaps again and suddenly Harvey’s hand is there, gripping his anorak’s sleeve with an iron fist and his grip hurts so much that Mike loses it there and then.

He spills the contents of his stomach into the ocean and he retches so violently that it feels as if he’s literally puking his guts out.

His soul, too.

Tears are streaming down his face and his knees go weak. He sinks to the floor, his jeans soaked with spray and his breathing flat and hitching erratically. 

Harvey lets go of his arm then, his other hand still clasped tightly around the wheel. “Mike,” he says, again and again. “Mike.”

“It’s my fault,” Mike slurs, looking up at Harvey, blinking against the darkness. “It’s all my fault. I left him alone for five fucking minutes to take a piss and when I came back up here he was gone. They…” Mike can feel his face contort and his throat constricts. He shakes his head rapidly and his fingers dig into his thighs. “They searched for him for days but… but they never found him…”

“Mike,” Harvey says again and this time Mike can hear him a little better. “Mike, get up.”

“Oh god,” Mike murmurs and shakes his head again. He can’t feel his legs and he doesn’t know how to do what Harvey is asking him to. “They never found him…”

“Mike, I said _get up_. Come on, Mike. You gotta get up. I can’t do this alone. Come on, I need you, you have to help me with this…”

Harvey is right, of course, there’s a job to do, his job, the boat, and it’s Mike’s. He scrambles to his knees, his jeans soaking wet and the planks of the deck hard against his bones, and then to his feet. He’s still wobbly and his head is still spinning but Harvey is there and he holds his hand out for Mike to grab and he pulls him close as soon as Mike has taken hold of it. He sandwiches Mike between the wheel and his chest and takes Mike’s hands in his to bring them up to grab hold of the wheel again.

When they fall down, far too heavy for Mike to keep them up, Harvey does it again and this time he keeps his own hands covering Mike’s for a moment, until Mike’s fingers curl and cling to the wood of the wheel. 

“Good boy,” Harvey murmurs against Mike’s ear. “That’s my good boy… You're doing so well, Mike. Really well...”

“I—“ Mike hiccups and tries to straighten his back a little. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to—“

“Shhhhh,” Harvey soothes, wrapping his arms around Mike lightly. “It’s okay. We’ll talk about it later, tomorrow.” He places a gentle kiss on the top of Mike’s head. “Just two more hours. You gotta keep it together for two more hours, okay?”

Mike nods. He can do this. With Harvey at his side like this, literally having his back, a warm, sheltering presence, he might be able to do this. 

“Yeah.” He clears his throat and adjusts his hold on the wheel. “Yeah, I can do that.”

“Good,” Harvey hums and nuzzles at Mike’s ear. “See? It’s really not that bad. You can calm down now, we got this…” His lips brush against the shell of Mike’s ears and they are just as warm and gentle as he remembers them. “Let me know if you need more space.”

Mike nods again but snuggles closer at the same time. Harvey’s arms around him, his breath against his skin and his ever-present soft, calming voice keep the block of ice to a manageable size. 

It’s a miracle, but they do make it to Tangier in one piece. It takes them almost two and a half hours from there, but even when the winds decrease and the sky becomes clear again, Harvey doesn’t leave Mike’s side unless he absolutely has to, to trim the sails or when they have to jibe or tack to adjust their course, which is still far too often for Mike but he knows and he understands that Harvey is just doing his job. Harvey holds Mike upright when his knees threaten to give in and he covers his hands with his every time Mike’s start to slip away from the wheel. 

Mike helps Harvey to strike and furl the sails when they’re approaching Tangier Ville port and Harvey navigates the _Cassidy_ into a berth with the same ease Mike had witnessed when he first saw him. 

As soon as they’re tied up at the bridge, Harvey sends Mike below deck and tells him that he’s going to take care of the formalities at the marina. 

“’m sorry,” Mike murmurs into the crook of Harvey’s shoulder. “I can come with. I can—“

“You can go downstairs, buddy, and get some rest,” Harvey smiles and caresses Mike’s face gently. “Everything else can either wait or I can take care of it.”

Mike merely nods and climbs down the stairs, his whole body aching with tension. He is in desperate need of a shower but before he can do that he needs to lie down for just one minute. He drops down onto the mattress and closes his eyes. His breathing is still shaky and it takes all the effort in the world to even it at least a little.

“Hey, Mike.”

Someone’s touching him, shaking his shoulder and Mike winces when he turns around until he’s lying on his side.

“Mike, come on,” the voice says and Mike’s eyelids are far too heavy for him to open them. “We need to get you out of these wet clothes.”

Mike is only dimly aware that he must be making some kind of noise and he’s trying to shove that voice away, but to no avail.

“Mike, come on. It’ll take just a minute. Then you can go back to sleep again. I’ll let you sleep, I promise.”

Sometimes it’s better to just let it happen if you want something to be over, so Mike yields to those hands maneuvering him around and taking first his life vest and then his shoes, jacket, pants, sweater and shirt off. He lets them roll him over and then back and cover him with something warm and soft. When they run down his side soothingly he sighs. Maybe they’re not so bad after all.

He tries to say something along those lines but no words will come out.

*****

When he comes to his senses the next time, his body is still aching, even more so than before. Even the tiniest movement hurts and the inside of his eye lids feels like sandpaper when he slowly blinks them open.

The lights are dimmed inside the _Cassidy’s_ cabin and Harvey is there, sitting next to him on the bed, cross-legged and a book in his hands. 

As soon as Mike smacks his lips, he looks up from whatever he’s been reading.

“Hey.”

“Hey,” Mike croaks, his voice sounding as hoarse as his throat feels. “What time is it?”

“A little past two,” Harvey smiles and reaches out to cup Mike’s jaw with his hand. “Good to have you back.”

“I—“ Mike clears his throat and swallows drily. “I promised you breakfast in Africa.”

“We can have that tomorrow,” Harvey says and reaches for a bottle of water he’s set onto the small rim of wood lining the bed. “Here, sit up a little.”

Mike struggles to a sitting position and moans. “Shit. Everything hurts.”

“Your muscles are sore,” Harvey unscrews the bottle and hands it to Mike. “It’ll pass. Small sips.”

Mike takes some sips and then he pauses before he brings the bottle to his lips again. “Thank you,” he says when he’s finished and hands the bottle back to Harvey. “I’m sorry about this whole mess. I… I’m sorry.”

“Mike.” Harvey’s voice is calm and warm. “There’s nothing to be sorry for and you don’t have to talk about it now if you don’t want to.”

“Yes, there is,” Mike says reaching for Harvey’s hand. “And yes, I have to. Even though I really don’t want to.”

“Okay.” Harvey nods after a long pause. “But how about a shower first? And then something to eat. You must be hungry.”

“Nah,” Mike shakes his head and scrambles out from below the covers. He hangs his legs over the edge at the foot of the bed and sighs. “Not hungry. But I definitely need a shower.”

The water in the small shower cabin is warm and soothing and Mike lets it pour down on him for a long, long time. When he comes back out again, Harvey is busy doing something in the kitchen, so Mike peeks his head through the door, his towel still slung around his hips. There’s a large bruise forming along his side, his ribcage and his flank, and it even stretches over his hip and outer thigh. 

“How’s the weather outside?” The air conditioning on board of the Cassidy leaves him without a clue.

“Very warm and dry,” Harvey grins. “We really are in Africa, it seems.”

“Yeah,” Mike smiles back. Harvey is wearing a pair of faded jeans and a white t-shirt. Mike’s eyes travel down Harvey’s body to find out that he’s barefoot. “We are.”

He quickly dresses in a pair of shorts and a polo shirt and joins Harvey in the kitchen again. 

“You wanna go out for food or stay here on the _Cassidy_ ,” Harvey asks, storing away a mug and a plate in the cupboard over the sink. He pauses and looks at Mike.

There is a hint of concern in his expression and openness and a gentle warmth that makes Mike’s eyes water.

“Can we… Can we sit outside for a moment? If the sun sail is up? And maybe take a walk around town later? There’s so much I want to show you.”

“Sure thing, rookie,” Harvey smiles and grabs two mugs with something steaming in it and carries them up the stairs. “Whatever you want.”

The first thing that Mike sees is that the sun sail has indeed been put up and that the table is set for a breakfast for two. There’s nothing fancy, just bread, butter, cheese and ham, muesli and yoghurt and some fresh fruit, but it looks better than any table Mike has ever seen. His stomach growls.

“See?” Harvey grins and sets the mugs down in the middle of the table. “You’re hungry.”

“Starving,” Mike nods, shielding his eyes against the sun and it’s reflections on boats and water. “Thank you, Harvey.”

“Come on,” Harvey ushers Mike around the table to his side. “Let’s grab a bite.”

They eat in silence for a while and Mike contemplates every bite he chews and swallows. He had thought the food would taste more stale but it’s actually delicious, rich and delicious. There’s hot peppermint tea in the mug and Harvey has added just a splash of sugar. It’s so perfect it’s ridiculous.

Mike looks up.

“It happened four years ago,” he says, setting down his mug and straightening his back. “Trevor and I… We had decided to take the weekend off. It was his boat, but I left him alone.” Harvey’s gaze never wavers and Mike bites his lips. “The weather wasn’t even that bad but it was at night and he didn’t have his life vest on, so he didn’t even have a light. I went below deck to take a leak, I wasn’t gone for more than a minute, maybe two, but when I came back… They never found him. I screamed his name over and over, cruised and tacked back and forth, radioed the sea rescue and the river police immediately, but… We don’t know if he fell or jumped. I… I don’t know if he fell or jumped. I just… I left him alone and they never found him. I…”

Only when Harvey reaches out to touch his cheek Mike realizes that he’s crying. “I’m sorry. I just…” He falls silent and lowers his gaze. “It’s all my fault.”

“No, it isn’t.”

“Yeah, it is. They told me it wasn’t. Of course. They took me in for questioning, kept me there for two days before they let me go again. Told me I was free to go. That I didn’t do anything wrong, that it was an accident.”

“Did you… did you talk to anyone afterwards?”

“Yeah, had a therapist for half a year or so. Stopped seeing him after a while. It wasn’t helping. Everyone knew. Everyone I worked with, everyone I knew in Gib. Nobody said anything, not ever, but…”

“Mike, it was not your fault.”

“Yes, it was. If I hadn’t—“

“Stop saying that, Mike. It’s survivor’s guilt talking and you know that.”

“You have no idea what you’re—“

“My best friend, Cole, he died when I was seventeen. Leukemia.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

“Harvey, I’m so sorry. I…”

“It’s okay, Mike. It happened a long time ago.”

“Do you still miss him?”

“Yeah,” Harvey says slowly, nodding. “Every single day.” He takes a deep breath and reaches for Mike’s hand. “He wanted to be an architect, too. We wanted to… to open an office together, work together, be partners.”

“When Trevor—“ Mike closes his eyes and feels Harvey squeeze his hand. “He was my partner. We had founded the company together, way back when... When Trevor died, I sold it, I sold everything. I just couldn’t do it anymore, not without him. He was my partner, we’d built the whole thing together from scratch and I… It just didn’t make any sense anymore.”

“I understand,” Harvey says and gives Mike’s hand another squeeze. “I am so, so sorry.”

“Thank you,” Mike says and takes a deep breath. “I never talked to anyone about this, ever. Not since I quit therapy. I mean, it was kinda easy, ‘cause everybody knew and they just left me alone, maybe because they didn’t know what to say. But… but the other day…” Mike raises his head but looks away, looks at the other boats, the city, the sky, anywhere else but Harvey. “The other day Stuey from the shop asked me if I was sure that this,” he gestures around the _Cassidy_ vaguely, “was a good idea.”

Mike can hear Harvey swallow. 

“I told him that yes, I was.”

When Mike looks up again, Harvey’s eyes are still on him. 

“I meant that, you know. I thought it was a good idea because you wanted to do this and I wanted to do this with you. I thought it was time I got over it, that I could do it. I… Yeah. It seems I underestimated how affected I still am by what happened back then. I’m sorry.”

Mike wipes his cheeks with the back of his hand.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry for dragging you into this mess, for yelling at you last night, for overreacting. I just.. I couldn’t... I thought we were going to go down, I really thought that that was it. This—“ Mike shrugs and gestures vaguely between Harvey and himself. “Something like that – that is not something a summer fling should have to go through…” He falls silent and looks away. There’s nothing left to say, really. They will sail home, back to Gib, that is, as soon as the conditions are right and Harvey will leave soon after and that will be that. 

“This is not a summer fling.”

Harvey’s voice is very soft and so low that it’s barely audible, but every single word that he speaks tugs at Mike’s heart in a way that knocks the air out of his lungs.

“Mike, look at me. This is not a summer fling. You know it isn’t.”

All Mike can do is nod. He doesn’t trust his voice at first but then he nods again. “Yeah,” he croaks. “I know.”

“Here.”

At some point of time Harvey must have fixed him something to eat, a slice of bread with cheese and ham on it, and he shoves the plate across the table towards Mike.

“You’ve got to eat something.”

“Thank you.” Mike sniffles and eats half of the sandwich, tiny bites, and it tastes so much better going down than it does when he throws it up again a couple of minutes later in the _Cassidy’s_ narrow bathroom. 

Mike crawls into bed when he’s done puking and Harvey hands him a glass of water he takes a sip from and hands back.

“Wake me in an hour?” He pulls the covers up over his shoulders and curls up on his side. “I want to at least show you the medina before we head back.”

“What are you talking about?” Harvey’s hand comes to rest on Mike’s shoulder, a gentle, reassuring weight. “Who said anything about heading back.”

Mike rolls around to face Harvey. “Well, I assumed that you’d want to head back as soon as possible after all of this.”

“You assume too much,” Harvey smiles, gently stroking Mike’s arm. “Now get some shut-eye. I need a guide who’s sharp and has his wits about him.”

“Okay,” Mike smiles back weakly and lets his eyelids flutter shut.


	9. Chapter 9

“That’s where we’re going to rent a car tomorrow.” As they disembark the _Cassidy_ and step onto the bridge, Mike’s finger points at a narrow building with brightly lit windows near the pier. “It’s an a little over an hour’s drive to Jebel Musa, maybe one and a half, if we want to take the seaside route.”

“I’d like that,” Harvey says and takes Mike’s hand in his for a second, giving it a gentle squeeze. “I’m sure it’s beautiful.”

“It’s just…” Mike withdraws his hand and scratches the back of his neck, wincing slightly. “I’d rather you rent the car? You’ve got your license with you, right?”

“Yeah,” Harvey nods, trying to catch Mike’s eyes. “But you made the reservation, maybe it’s better if you—“

“Technically, I’m not allowed to drive?” Mike cuts in and Harvey stops dead in his tracks. 

“ _What?_ ”

“I don’t have a driving license.” Mike stops and turns around. “I… just never got around to it.”

“You… _what?_ ”

Harvey looks endearingly puzzled but also a little annoyed and slightly angry and Mike wants to wipe that note of anger off of his face.

“It’s Gib, man,” he says lightly, shrugging his shoulders. “Nobody cares.”

“Mike, you’re taking _passengers_.”

“Hey,” Mike tries to defend himself, even though he already knows that Harvey is right. “It’s not that I can’t drive. I’m just not allowed to. Technically.”

“Mike, you are not allowed to, _period_. As soon as we go back you take that damn test, you hear me?”

“But—“

“No. No buts. If something happens, anything at all, you would be in so much trouble. Please, promise me you’ll get a license.”

“I promise,” Mike says sheepishly, chewing on the edge of his lip. “You’re right. I _know_ you’re right. I’m sorry. I promise.”

“Good.” Harvey nods and nudges the small of Mike’s back with a gentle hand. “Now show me Tangier. Idiot.”

Mike yelps in surprise and catches himself just in time before he stumbles and he starts walking towards the city but not without turning around once more, very quickly, and blowing Harvey a raspberry.

“Unbelievable,” Harvey sighs, grinning from ear to ear. “I’m spending my time with a three year old.”

It’s just a short walk from the marina to the nearest entrance to the medina and once they’re inside, it feels as if they have stepped into a different world.

The alleys are so narrow that they can barely walk next to each other, and it’s a little darker in here and everything is buzzing with life. It his hot, maybe even a little hotter than outside of the old part of the city, because the walls are radiating the heat and sunlight they have soaked up over the day, and the air is full of spices and there’s laughter all around and the yelling of the vendors and the screeching of the children chasing each other around. 

Before they left the _Cassidy_ Mike had instructed Harvey to watch his pockets, to have some coins and sweets ready for the kids and to not, under any circumstances, engage with the vendors, no matter how hard they’d try to make him to. “Even if you say ‘No’ to them they will see it that way – you’ve already bought the goods and all that is left to do is just to negotiate the price. They won’t leave you alone, ever, if you just give them so much as the time of the day.”

Harvey ends up with a New York Yankees baseball cap, probably a cheap rip-off, a key chain token, a beautiful cotton scarf that he puts around Mike’s neck with a huge smile on his face, a bag with what they both think is an assortment of Moroccan spices and a nice little chest to go with it, a silver ring that he slips into his front pocket and some kind of musical instrument that the vendor demonstrates for them with an enthusiasm that makes Mike forget for a moment that Harvey, very much to his surprise, has to be the worst person at haggling he has ever seen in his life. 

When the vendor is done with the demonstration, Harvey gives it a try as well and he even manages to coax some noise from it, and even if it isn’t pretty, Mike loves it.

They watch the snake charmers and the jugglers and when it gets dark, they find a small restaurant on one of the medina’s rooftops. There is no menu but what is being served is beyond delicious and the hot mint tea with an insane amount of sugar in it goes incredibly well with it. 

“Wow,” Harvey says as he cleans his fingers in the small bowl of lemon water at his left. “That was incredible.”

“Yeah,” Mike nods in agreement, stretching in his chair. “I don’t think I’ve eaten that much in ages. Amazing. I’m so happy I could burst. And so full.”

“Yeah, me too,” Harvey leans back and takes a sip from his glass of tea. “So, the pillars tomorrow.”

“Yeah,” Mike nods. “Gotta see the other side, right?”

“Mike,” Harvey says and reaches for Mike’s hand. He covers it with his for the shortest moment and catches Mike’s eyes before he withdraws his hand again. “We can take the ferry to get back to Gib when we’re ready to return. Have someone else sail the _Cassidy_ back.”

Mike holds Harvey’s gaze for a long time in silence until he nods. “Thank you, Harvey. Let’s decide that when we’re ready to leave, okay?”

“Sure thing,” Harvey says, and Mike nods again. “You look good in my scarf,” he adds and Mike can feel his face burst into a smile.

“I’m going to look even better without it,” he grins and wriggles his eyebrows. “If you know what I mean.” He runs his hand along his throat, pushing the scarf aside and exposing his skin.

Harvey gasps. “Shit,” he whispers, his eyes glued to Mike’s fingers. “Let’s head back home.”

“Gladly.” 

They get up and Harvey settles the bill and by the size of the smile of the innkeeper as he guides them downstairs and to the exit, Mike gathers that Harvey has left a more than generous tip. 

The medina has grown a little more quiet in the meantime and the vendors have cleared most of their goods away, probably stacked them in the hallways of the houses lining the narrow alleys. Harvey and Mike can walk next to each other now and while neither dares to take the other one’s hand, the backs of their hands and their arms brush against each other every so often and each contact sends waves of heat and longing through Mike’s body.

“Can’t wait to get my hands on you,” Harvey murmurs and Mike’s breathing hitches. Even though it’s just a short walk from the exit of the medina back to the boat, it seems to be endless tonight.

“Me neither,” Mike whispers, clenching his hands into tight fists to keep them from taking Harvey’s hand, from grabbing Harvey anywhere he can reach. “I’m dying to feel them everywhere…”

Harvey actually jogs the last few steps to where the _Cassidy_ is tied up and offers Mike a hand to climb on board. He ushers him down the stairs and pulls him into his arms as soon as they are below deck.

“God, I want you so much,” Harvey murmurs into a kiss that has Mike’s knees go weak. “I want you, I want you, I want you…”

“Yeah,” Mike echoes and begins to tug and tear at Harvey’s close, desperate to get his hands on Harvey’s skin, on Harvey’s body. “Come on, come on…”

“Shower first,” Harvey moans as Mike’s hands travel down his back and into the waistband of his pants. “Come on, let’s make it quick.”

“Too narrow,” Mike pants, shaking his head, or at least trying to, his lips too thirsty for Harvey’s to let go of them for even a second. “Won’t fit.”

It does fit, but only barely. They have made short work of their clothing and now being fenced in that small glass cubicle, the warm water pouring down on them, is strangely arousing. Their bodies are lined up against each other, almost touching everywhere and every time either he or Harvey moves, their cocks brush against each other and their moans echo in their ears.

Harvey’s hands are leathered with soap and they are running down Mike’s back until they cup his ass. 

Mike bites a low moan against Harvey’s throat as Harvey’s fingers spread his cheeks and run along his crack. 

They run down his crack slowly, maddeningly slowly, until Harvey is touching him right there, until they circle his hole, until they press against Mike’s entrance with the gentlest of pressure. 

“Oh god,” Mike whispers and Harvey keeps teasing him, keeps touching him there until Mike is sure he’s going to come right there and then. He whimpers against Harvey’s throat and Harvey chuckles.

“You like that, don’t you?”

Mike’s fingers dig into Harvey’s back as he nods. Or at least that’s what he thinks he does. His head does something, it moves, but Mike can’t be sure. He’s too out of it to be sure.

“Take me to bed,” he whispers, or at least that’s what he hopes he does.

Harvey lifts Mike’s head by the chin and claims his mouth in a deep, passionate kiss, his erection throbbing against Mike’s. “Can’t wait,” he murmurs, his lips brushing over Mike’s in a way that makes Mike want to bite them. He catches Mike’s lower lip between his teeth and tugs. “Want you now…”

Harvey switches the shower off and they dry each other off quickly before Harvey takes Mike’s hand and guides him to the bed. He lowers him onto the mattress carefully, coming to lie on top of him.

They kiss again. And again. And again. It is as if Mike can’t get enough of Harvey, of Harvey’s taste and of Harvey’s lips. Harvey’s body is a solid weight keeping him grounded and if he died right now, of shock, of lack of oxygen, of happiness, of love – he’d certainly die a happy man.

He tries to communicate that, to show Harvey with his lips and with his tongue and hands, with the way he rolls his hips or tries to at least and with his moans and hisses. He needs Harvey to know, to understand.

Harvey’s hands are everywhere, his taste is everywhere and this is how it should be. This is so right it makes Mike feel light-headed and dizzy and when Harvey lets go of him and sits up and back on his heels between Mike’s legs, for a moment Mike has to strain really hard to be able to focus.

“What do you want?” Harvey’s voice is low and soft and it wraps around Mike like the lushest blanket. “Mike…”

“Make love to me,” Mike whispers. “Make me yours…”

Harvey’s eyes flare up at that and they swallow Mike whole. Harvey bows down and pulls Mike up at the same time, his kiss bruising Mike’s lips and piercing Mike’s soul. Mike has never felt claimed like that before, never felt anything so possessive as Harvey’s kiss, and he has never felt more himself in all his life.

He moans into Harvey’s mouth, his hands grabbing Harvey’s arm, reaching around Harvey’s neck, pulling him closer and even closer still. When Harvey lowers him back onto the mattress he squeezes his eyes shut and holds his breath as Harvey’s hands travel down his legs.

“Up,” Harvey coaxes softly and Mike bends his legs at the knees. “Hold yourself open a bit.”

Mike reaches down and pulls his cheeks apart with trembling fingers. He loves being so open and vulnerable for Harvey and he wishes he were able to open his eyes to see the look on Harvey’s face right now. He just knows that Harvey looks amazing. His cock seems to agree. It twitches against his stomach and Mike can feel how he’s beginning to leak pre-come.

Harvey chuckles. “Yeah, you like that…” Mike can feel him shift and change his position and suddenly his leaking cock is engulfed in a wet warmth as Harvey’s lips close around it and take Mike in.

“Hmmmmm,” Harvey hums around Mike’s cock and Mike actually twitches in Harvey’s mouth, causing Harvey to sputter with choked laughter.

“Yeah, you do,” Harvey breathes when he has let Mike slip from his mouth again, his breath on Mike’s wet crown almost too much, almost.

Then Harvey moves even lower. He adjusts the hold of Mike’s fingers on his cheeks, making him opening himself up a little more, and then he blows. 

A thin stream of air hits Mike’s entrance, almost like a finger, almost like a tongue. It’s light and soft and incredibly arousing and Mike is sure he’s going to die from this or at least go insane. With pleasure, with lust, with want. He’s _this_ close to begging Harvey to _please, please touch me, there, anywhere, everywhere_ , when the teasing breath dies down and something wet and hot touches against his hole, the tip of Harvey’s tongue. 

It’s not as if Mike has never been kissed there before, it’s not like he’s never been rimmed, but what Harvey does to him, the way Harvey plays with him, teases him, caresses him and clearly enjoys it, judging by the moans and hisses that fall against Mike’s moist skin, the way Harvey takes care of him is nothing like anything he has ever experienced. By the time Harvey’s tongue breaches Mike’s body for the first time, he’s already a trembling, quivering mess barely capable of a coherent thought.

Harvey works him open with his tongue, and his tongue is joined by his fingers after a while and then, after another endless, delicious while of the sweetest torture imaginable, replaced by them. 

Harvey sits up and Mike finally dares to open his eyes. Harvey’s face is flush and his throat and chest are, too, and his lips are dark and swollen and glistening with saliva. He grins and wipes his mouth with the back of his left hand, his right one still two fingers deep inside of Mike.

“Give me that,” he says, his words slightly slurred, and nods towards the small bedside table.

Mike lets go of his ass and reaches for the tube of lube and the condom lying there, his fingers trembling so much that they nearly drop it before Harvey can take it from him.

“Careful,” Harvey smiles and Mike shakes his head.

“Are you trying to kill me?” he whispers, his voice raw and hoarse. “God, do you have any idea what you’re doing to me?”

Harvey’s eyes are clouded with need and he bites his lips as he opens the tube and brings it between Mike’s legs. He withdraws his fingers almost entirely and squeezes a generous amount of lube onto them before he resumes fingering Mike open. After a couple of moments he adds some more lube and then a third finger so he can stretch Mike’s entrance even further.

Mike’s hand blindly searches for Harvey’s and their fingers entwine while Harvey continues to prepare Mike.

“I’m ready,” Mike moans when he can’t take it anymore and his need for Harvey threatens to overwhelm him. “Please…” His grip on Harvey’s fingers tightens and he tries to pull Harvey on top of him.

“You have to let go of my hand for a moment,” Harvey pants, withdrawing his lube-covered fingers from Mike’s body. He wipes them quickly against the sheets and tears the condom wrapper open. His hands are shaking when he rolls it over his cock and that he holds his breath as he does it.

He positions himself, and while he’s still sliding into Mike’s tight heat at a maddeningly slow and gentle pace, his hand finds Mike’s again. 

Mike moans when Harvey is completely buried inside of him, savoring the sensation of being stretched and filled and the feeling of a completeness so sweet it hurts. “So good,” he whispers, shaking his head, “so good…”

Harvey’s breathing comes in labored pants and he’s trembling inside of Mike, his whole body vibrating with the effort to hold back. He starts to move slowly and with measured thrusts, pushing into Mike again and again. 

Mike’s legs wrap around Harvey’s waist and his fingers cling to Harvey’s as Harvey fucks into him over and over again, splitting him open and touching him in places he has never been touched before, and certainly not like that. 

Their bodies are covered in sweat and every time Harvey moves, with every thrust of his hips Mike tumbles closer and closer to the edge until he is sure he can’t take it anymore.

“H—Harvey, please,” he moans, grabbing the sheets with his free hand so tight his fingers threaten to cramp. “I’m so close, _so_ close… _Please_. I want to come…”

“Not yet,” Harvey shakes his head and continues to fuck Mike like that, just like that, again and again, without ever changing his pace or angle.

“”Please…” Mike knows he’s begging, he’s almost sobbing with it, really, but he doesn’t care. He wants this, he wants to come more than he has ever wanted anything before. He’s so close he can taste it and all he needs is Harvey’s hand on his cock, it’s all he needs, and he thinks he babbles about that even but he isn’t sure. All he knows is need.

“Not yet,” Harvey says again and Mike can feel him trembling inside of him. “Not yet. There’s more…”

Mike doesn’t understand and his brain nearly short circuits. _More? How can there be more? This is too much already, way too much and how—oh…_

_Oh._

Harvey changes his angle a bit, just a little bit, and also his pace, fucks into Mike’s loose body with a little more force, and suddenly Mike is flying. His whole body goes lax and there’s a tingling sensation everywhere, running through him like a warm, viscous river, filling him completely from his hairs to the tips of his fingers and toes. His need surges and a slow, gradual explosion of heat spreads from his groin all over him and he barely notices Harvey’s fingers on his cock, guiding him through it with erratic strokes while his own cock swells inside of Mike and he empties himself deep within Mike’s hungry, wanting body.

Mike has no concept of time, of how long their climax lasts but it seems pretty much like forever, as if coming for Harvey like this, with Harvey, is all he has ever done and all he ever will be doing for what is left of eternity. He clings to Harvey with all the strength he can muster, his feet crossed at the ankles at the small of Harvey’s back and his fingers entwined with Harvey’s and Mike is sure that that’s the only thing that keeps him grounded to this earth, to this existence.

He’s floating, even after Harvey has to slip out, so it’s a good thing that Harvey pulls him into his arms just after and keeps murmuring things into his ear and kissing words along his throat, it’s a good thing that Harvey does all that, a really good thing.

“Wow,” is the first thing Mike says when he can speak again. “What—that was—what was _that_?”

“You’re mine now,” Harvey whispers and turns Mike’s head so he can claim his mouth in a deep, lingering kiss. 

Mike knows that Harvey is right. There is no going back after this, not a chance in hell.

“Yeah,” he breathes and lets Harvey pull him almost on top of him. He snuggles up against Harvey’s chest and lets Harvey hold him close, Harvey’s fingers trace lazy patterns on Mike’s arm. “I feel _so_ good,” Mike murmurs, kissing Harvey’s chest sloppily. “I think I never felt this good… Thank you.”

“You’re very welcome,” Harvey says and Mike can hear the smile in Harvey’s voice even though his eyes are closed. Harvey ruffles his hair and sits up.

Mike opens his eyes and frowns as he watches Harvey climb out of bed and walk into the kitchen. He doesn’t want Harvey to leave and his body misses him already, misses the warmth, the closeness, so he reaches out with his hand as if to pull Harvey back into bed with him.

Harvey picks up his pants from the bench where he has dropped them earlier and a second later he’s back at Mike’s side, with a grin on his face that lights up the whole cabin. “Give me that for a moment.” He reaches for Mike’s hand and slips the ring he has bought in the medina earlier that day on Mike’s finger.

All Mike can do is stare and stare and stare, stare at his hand, at his finger, the ring, at Harvey’s hand holding his. He doesn’t have to ask what this is, there is no need to ask what this means. Mike knows. Of course he does.

“Oh my god,” he whispers as he raises his head, his eyes stinging as they meet Harvey’s. “Harvey…”

“Unless you’d rather have the key chain,” Harvey says, smiling, and suddenly Mike has to look away.

“I—“ Mike bites his lips and shakes his head.

“Mike?” Harvey reaches for Mike’s chin and lifts his head, searching for his eyes. “ _Would_ you rather have the key chain?”

It’s impossible to avoid Harvey’s gaze and Mike wants to make that little note of doubt that has crept into them go away and never return. “I don’t know what to say,” he croaks, blinking against the burning in his eyes.

“Then don’t say anything. Just tell me you’ll wear it and think about it?”

“Harvey, there’s nothing to think about,” Mike replies after a short pause, trying to make his voice sound as firm as possible and failing miserably. “You know that, right?”

“Yeah, I do,” Harvey nods and brings Mike’s hand to his lips to place a soft kiss on his knuckles. “Come here.”

He gathers Mike into his arms and sinks back into the mattress with him, pulling up the thin cotton cover over them as they lie down.

Mike nestles against Harvey’s chest and Harvey switches off the lights. Now it’s just the stars in the sky shining down upon them through the skylight above the bed.

“Can we switch off the air conditioning for the night?” Mike asks, running his fingers gently around Harvey’s nipple. “I kinda want to feel the real temperature tonight? Just the two of us and…”

“Of course,” Harvey says and reaches for the remote control again. “Anything you want, Mike.”

“Thank you,” Mike murmurs, smacking his lips. He closes his eyes and feels the ring around his finger. “I love you so much. I know this shouldn’t be possible but… but I do. So, so very much.”

“Love you more,” Harvey whispers and Mike smiles against his chest.

“Impossible.”

“We’ll see about that,” Harvey says and pulls the covers a little higher. “Now let’s get some sleep. We’re going _plus ultra_ tomorrow.”


	10. Chapter 10

“Fuck.” Mike is hot and everything itches. His belly is sticky with dried come and his body is covered in sweat and so is Harvey’s. The covers and the sheets are drenched and the sweat burns in Mike’s eyes when he tries to open them. He’s still encased in Harvey’s arms and when he tries to roll onto his back, he realizes that they are partly stuck together.

“Yeah,” Harvey slowly stretches and the trail his fingers trace along Mike’s arm raises goosebumps on Mike’s skin. 

“Sounded a lot better in theory,” Mike makes a face and tries to wriggle out of Harvey’s arm but Harvey is having none of that. 

“Yeah, it did,” he smiles and pulls Mike in for a kiss. His lips plunder Mike’s mouth until Mike is hard and out of breath. Neither takes very long. 

Mike is still open and loose from last night so Harvey doesn’t need much lube to get his fingers inside and soon his other hand joins Mike’s in stroking their cocks. It’s messy and quick but this is what they both need, so when Mike cries out, his head thrown back, and spills himself over their joined hands, Harvey follows almost immediately after.

Gentleman that he is, Harvey lets Mike have the shower first and when he climbs on deck all washed and dressed in fresh clothes, Mike has already prepared the breakfast table in the _Cassidy’s_ stern. 

Harvey blinks against the early morning sunlight. It’s going to be another warm day and they have agreed to start their trip quite early, so they’re having breakfast on the _Cassidy_ again. 

“So, are we climbing up that mountain, or what?” Harvey asks, looking in the direction of Jebel Musa.

“You bet your ass we are,” Mike grins, handing Harvey a steaming mug of coffee. “This is the only coffee you’re going to get today,” he says, nodding towards the mug. “For the rest of the day it’s tea, green peppermint tea. You know, when in Rome…”

“Yeah,” Harvey takes the mug from Mike’s hand and slips onto his bench. 

“It’s more of a hike anyway,” Mike explains. “Just a little over two thousand and seven hundred feet to the summit and it’s not very steep. Should be easy enough if we don’t get into the worst of the heat. All we need is good shoes and a hat and some sunscreen and we’re good to go.”

“Good thing I bought that Yankees cap then.” Harvey takes a sip from his coffee and Mike swallows and drops his gaze to his hand, to the ring.

“Yeah, good thing you did.”

*****

They are on the road in the rented car in less than an hour and even though Harvey insists on driving, Mike feels light spirited and happy. There’s some weird, upbeat Moroccan music on the radio and they have the windows open in favor of the air conditioning for now and they banter back and forth the whole trip, interrupted from time to time by a particularly stunning view or the overwhelming need to kiss and to touch.

Harvey’s hand is on Mike’s thigh almost constantly, and sometimes the caress of Harvey’s thumb, that little feather-light thing, almost drives Mike out of his mind. It’s a continuous game of tease and caress and when they finally arrive at Jebel Musa Mike’s whole body is tingling with the resonance of Harvey’s touch and Harvey’s voice.

He takes a deep breath before he gets out of the car and straightens his back. The trip has taken a little longer than planned but they still have time to make the hike up to the summit before it gets too hot. He tosses Harvey the sun screen and puts on a worn-out baseball cap. The backpacks are in the trunk and Harvey and he get there to open it at the same time.

“You look like a tourist,” Mike grins, nodding at Harvey’s baseball cap.

“I am a tourist.” Harvey shoulders his backpack and puts on his sunglasses. “Of course I do.”

“You’re a drop-dead gorgeous tourist,” Mike teases and takes a step closer. He slips his arm around Harvey’s waist and steals a glance around before he pulls Harvey in for a short kiss. “My tourist.” He kisses Harvey again and when he lets go, he slaps Harvey’s ass playfully. “Come on, let’s go.”

The hike isn’t too difficult and they only break for water once before they reach the summit. 

“Look,” Mike points north across the Strait. “There’s Gib.”

“Home,” Harvey says and pulls Mike close before Mike can say anything in return. There’s nobody in sight so they indulge in another tender, lingering kiss. 

“Come on,” Mike says when Harvey finally breaks the kiss. “I want to show you something.”

He leads Harvey to a little ruin that from a distance looks exactly like part of the mountain. “It’s called the _Summit Refugio_ ,” he says and pulls Harvey inside. As soon as they’re in the shadow, Harvey’s arms are wrapped around Mike and Mike is pulled flush against Harvey’s body. 

Harvey’s hands find their way underneath Mike’s shirt and they’re both hard and throbbing in what seems like an instant.

Mike moans into the kiss and arches into Harvey’s touch and caress, his whole body yearning for contact.

“You have no idea,” Harvey bites against Mike’s lips and his index finger worms his way between Mike’s cheeks, “no idea how much I want you. No fucking idea…”

After another couple of heated moments they break apart and both take a step backwards, panting and flushed with arousal. 

“No way I would let you fuck me in here,” Mike grins, taking off his cap and running his fingers through his hair. 

“You totally would,” Harvey grins back, adjusting himself. 

“Yeah, I guess I would.”

They lean against the wall of the _refugio_ for a moment, next to each other, and share a bottle of water. 

“It’s so close,” Mike gestures in the direction of Gibraltar, the bottle still in his hand. “We’re not going to take the ferry. We’re going to sail back.”

“You sure?” Harvey takes the bottle from Mike’s hand again and drains it. “You don’t have to prove anything to me, you know that, right? Or to yourself.”

“Yeah, I do,” Mike nods once and pries himself away from the wall. “I mean, of course I know that I don’t, not really, but… but I want to. I know that I can do it.”

“Okay,” Harvey says and gives Mike’s hand a short squeeze. “Then that’s what we’ll do.”

The way down the mountain takes a little less time and once they’ve reached the parking lot and their car, Harvey slips into the driver’s seat and grins at Mike. “Come on, let’s get back to the _Cassidy_. I want to finish what I started up there.”

“Oh no,” Mike grins back. “Food first. And then some culture. I didn’t bring you all the way to Morocco just to fuck.”

“Didn’t you?”

Mike shakes his head and drags Harvey back out of the car. “Come on, I know a nice little place in the village where we can have a late lunch before we head back. And then I want to show you the Kasbah in Tangier.”

“That’s a lot of culture for one day, Mike,” Harvey says, smiling. “But all right, you’re the guide. And as long as we have some energy left for you-know-what after that,” Harvey actually wiggles his goddamn eyebrows at him – “I’m game.”

“You’re an idiot,” Mike grins and gives Harvey’s arm a little squeeze. “As if we wouldn’t. Now come on, I’m starving.”

The couscous is spectacular, the yoghurt sauce divine and the obligatory steaming hot, sweetened mint tea as refreshing as it can be. After they’ve finished their lunch Harvey finds out that Mike had lied about the coffee in the morning when the waiter brings them two cups of very strong espresso.

“They’re not much into coffee here,” Mike says, letting some sugar drop into his cup. He picks up the tiny spoon and stirs. “Unlike Turkey. Or Greece. Coffee there’s great.”

“I like the mint tea,” Harvey says. “I think I’m going to take that home with me, make it myself when I’m back.”

“Home,” Mike repeats slowly and takes a small sip from his espresso. It’s still very hot, so he blows on it a little to cool it down. 

“Yeah,” Harvey nods, sipping on his cup as well. “New York.”

“Hmmhmm.” Mike knows that they’ll have to talk about it but he’s not ready to do that yet. “Can we talk about it when we’re back in Gib? I’m not sure I can just now.”

The pause before Harvey replies is brief, very brief, but it is there. “Of course, Mike. Whenever you’re ready.”

“Thank you.” Mike nods. He’s very grateful and he hopes that Harvey knows that. It’s not that he doesn’t want to talk about it, it’s just – not yet. Not right now. 

The ride back to Tangier is a little less up-beat than the trip in the morning, but Harvey’s hand still rests on Mike’s thigh almost the entire time they’re on the road. Mike is incredibly grateful for that as well.

When they get closer to Tangier and the traffic grows more intense, Mike points to the left. 

“Take that next exit, I want to show you something. Takes us about an extra hour or so, so there will still be enough time and energy left for you-know-what.” He wiggles his eyebrows just like Harvey has done earlier and a big grin spreads over his face.

Harvey laughs at that and indicates before he changes lanes and leaves the highway. Their new route leads them around Tangier and through a beautiful forest. 

“It’s a natural reserve,” Mike says and points to a make-shift stand at the side of the road. “Do you want some pine nuts? They’re really good.”

They stop and buy a bag of pine nuts from an old woman and her granddaughter and Mike keeps feeding the small nuts to Harvey as they drive on. Mike keeps his fingers close to Harvey’s mouth a little longer than strictly necessary and Harvey’s lips linger around them a little longer than they have to as well. 

“Delicious,” Harvey murmurs around one of those little morsels and Mike shivers. “Tastes a bit like you-know-what…”

“I’m riding in this car with a teenager,” Mike sighs and shakes his head. “Seriously. Is that all you think about?”

Harvey’s brows furrow and he purses his lips. After a moment of silence he nods. “Yeah,” he says. “Yeah, it is.”

“Yeah, me too.” Mike grins and reaches over to feed Harvey another pine nut. “That and sucking you off.”

Harvey nearly chokes on the nut and Mike laughs. “No, but really. I really, _really_ want to suck you off. Taste you, taste all of you.”

Mike’s laughter intensifies when the car suddenly speeds up. “Careful, they’re pretty strict over here with the speed limit. Don’t want to have to blow you in a prison cell full of shady criminals.”

“Good point,” Harvey grins and slows the car down again. “But I really, _really_ can’t wait to get my hands on you back on the boat.”

Mike directs Harvey onto a huge parking lot once they’ve left the forest and they take a path that leads them to a large square framed on three sides by flat, ridiculously white and shiny buildings. 

“It’s the _Grottes d'Hercule_ , the Cave of Hercules,” Mike explains, pointing at the building on the right side of the square. “This is where Hercules rested after he had completed all his labors.”

The caves are nice and cool even if they’re quite frequented by other visitors and resonating with what sounds like a thousand voices. Harvey asks Mike to tell him more about the labors of Hercules and Mike launches into one of his favorite subjects with gusto.

Harvey is an avid listener, asking questions and showing he’s into what Mike is talking about constantly, and soon Mike’s cheeks are burning with excitement. He’s still talking when they exit the caves again after a little over half an hour.

The sun has already begun to sink, but the sky is still azure and the waters of the Atlantic Ocean are glittering with its many beams.

“Beautiful,” Harvey says. “Thank you for bringing me here.”

Mike leads the way to a café on top of one of the white buildings and orders some more mint tea. “It’s not the best,” he says when the waiter has left their table, “but the view is great.”

It’s still pretty warm and they take their time sipping their tea and looking out over the ocean. They’re in no hurry and Mike stretches lazily in the shade the sun sail provides.

“Let’s go see the Kasbah tomorrow,” Mike suggests and Harvey nods. 

“Yeah. I’d rather head back to the _Cassidy_ soon and take a late afternoon nap with you. And maybe engage in some you-know-what…”

“And we can go out for dinner again tonight, there’s this great fish place I want to show you. Well, not just fish, but they do have great fish and… yeah, I think you’re gonna love it.”

“I love _you_ ,” Harvey says and reaches across the table for Mike’s hand. He lets his fingertip run over the silver band circling Mike’s ring finger and smiles. “I love that you’re wearing my ring.”

Mike stares at Harvey’s and his fingers for a moment before he turns his hand palm up and entwines his fingers with Harvey’s. He looks up and finds Harvey looking at him with an expression on his face that makes Mike’s heart melt.

“I love that too,” he whispers and Harvey’s smile broadens. “Take me home.”

Harvey nods and gives Mike’s hand a short squeeze before he lets go. They rise and Mike drops some notes onto the table to pay for their tea. The drive back to Tangier is short and they drop of the car while the sun is still making the houses of Tangier shine brightly and glow with warmth.

Once they’re back on the _Cassidy_ and below deck, they undress each other slowly and crawl into bed and below the thin cotton covers naked. They come to lie on their sides, facing each other, and Mike can’t help but smile. 

He wants to tell Harvey how beautiful he is and to touch him everywhere, but before he can do that, a long yawn stifles his words.

Harvey chuckles and reaches for Mike’s face. He lets his fingers trace Mike’s features and then run through his hair.

“Why don’t you close your eyes for a bit?” he says, cupping Mike’s jaw. “Late afternoon nap, remember?”

“I can’t,” Mike says and yaws again. “I’m too in love to fall asleep.”

“But it’s allowed to be in love and to sleep at the same time,” Harvey whispers, caressing Mike’s cheek with his thumb. “Didn’t you know that?”

“Even when you’re this much in love?” Mike closes his eyes for a moment, but then he opens them again. “Even then?”

“Yeah,” Harvey nods, leaning in close to place a gentle kiss on Mike’s lips. “Especially then.”

“I don’t know if I can, though,” Mike kisses back. “I don’t know if I can stop looking at you.”

“Yes, you can. I know you can,” Harvey smiles and Mike exhales deeply. “Let me show you how it’s done.” He closes his eyes, still smiling, and Mike follows his lead.

When Mike awakes, it’s to the sensation of fingers traveling his skin. He’s lying on his back and the fingers are everywhere. They are on his shoulders, his arms, his chest, his belly, his cock, his legs, even his hands and feet, and not to forget his face. They are gentle and careful, slow and deliberate, searching and reading every part of him, and their playful touch awakes and arouses every part of him as well. His nipples have risen, most likely quite some time before he has woken up, as has his cock. He’s almost fully erect yet there is no hurry, no immediate need for completion, just this slowly growing desire to touch and to be touched. 

“God, this feels so good,” Mike whispers without opening his eyes. “Don’t ever stop…”

“Not planning to.”

Harvey’s voice is as tender as his fingers and Mike allows himself a couple of moments to just lie there and enjoy. He has always known that his nipples are sensitive as well as his throat and the insides of his arms and that little patch of skin just over his pubic bone, but Harvey’s touches have turned his whole body into one pulsing erogenous zone and even the air against his skin feels arousing on such a deep level that Mike is sure he’s going to pass out from it sooner or later if Harvey really keeps going.

Then, suddenly, Mike can’t keep just lying there like that anymore. He has to open his eyes, has to look at Harvey again and has to touch him back. His fingertips yearn for Harvey’s skin and when they first touch it, Mike knows he’s home.

He rolls onto his side and his eyelids flutter open. Harvey is there, in all his sleepy late afternoon glory, his hair ruffled and his skin soft and golden.

“I love you,” Mike whispers before his lips find Harvey’s and the tips of their tongues tentatively touch. “I love you so much…”

“Love you more,” Harvey whispers back without ever stopping touching Mike, “so much more…”

“Impossible…”

For the longest time those are the last words spoken between them, at least the last coherent ones. They keep caressing each other like that forever, stroking each other’s skin, exploring, kissing, licking and sucking. At one point they have moved so close, arms slung around each other, Harvey’s spit-slick fingers inside of Mike and Mike’s inside of Harvey, their tongues and lips drinking in the taste of their thirst and their cocks throbbing between their bodies, so close that there is no room for anything else between them, not even breath and not even thought.

When they simply can’t take it anymore their bodies find a rhythm, a continuous rolling of their hips, of rubbing against each other until they’re both panting and drenched in sweat, their skin slick between them and their muscles clenching around their fingers. 

When Harvey comes he releases one long, low moan and his body goes completely lax. Mike can feel Harvey spill himself between them and that sensation sends him over the edge as well, panting his release against Harvey’s throat, Harvey’s pulse fluttering against his open lips.

Slowly but surely their breathing evens out a little and they withdraw their fingers from each other’s bodies. The caressing doesn’t stop, though, and neither does the exchange of slow, lazy, sated kisses.

“God, what are you doing to me?” Mike’s lips brush against Harvey’s with every word he says. “This is…”

“Yeah,” Harvey murmurs, letting his fingers find the way into Mike’s hair. “I know…”

“It’s different, every time, and ever time is like the first time ever.”

“Yeah…”

“It’s so much,” Mike buries his face against Harvey’s throat and sighs when Harvey strokes a lazy path down his spine. 

“Yeah.”

He almost falls asleep again in Harvey’s arms but this time Harvey doesn’t let him. “Come on, rookie,” Harvey whispers into his ear before he can completely drift off. “Shower. And you promised me dinner.”

“They eat dinner late over here,” Mike murmurs, smacking his lips. “Just like in Spain, maybe even later.”

“It is late. It’s almost ten p.m..”

“Holy _shit_!”

Mike sits up in the blink of an eye and looks down on a slightly puzzled but visibly very amused Harvey.

“We slept that long?”

“I wouldn’t call it sleeping,” Harvey grins up at him. “Only part of it.”

“True.” Mike leans in and kisses Harvey briefly before he climbs out of bed, grinning back. “I get to shower first.”

He hops into the shower and cleans himself off, marveling at the growing feeling of happy anticipation inside of him. He’s already looking forward to seeing Harvey again in a minute or two. 

While Harvey uses the shower, Mike gets dressed. He picks some fresh clothes from the closet, light linen slacks in a warm tone of beige and a navy blue linen shirt. He has bought those clothes for this trip especially, choosing something special to wear for the first time in years. He checks his outfit in the mirror inside of the cabin’s closet when the bathroom door swings open and Harvey steps out, clad in nothing but a towel slung around his hips.

Harvey stops dead in his tracks, inhaling sharply, and their eyes meet in the mirror.

“Are you trying to starve me?”

“What? Why— _no_!”

“Do you know how hot you look in those? Turn around.”

Mike turns around and Harvey disentangles and drops his towel.

“That hot.”

Harvey is already half hard again. “That ass in those pants should be illegal,” he laughs and gives himself one slow stroke before he bows down and picks up the towel. “And now stop it and let me get dressed. I am starving.”

“Stop _what_?” Mike tries to sound offended but there is simply no way to even mock-pretend with Harvey looking at him like that. “Okay, okay,” he hurries to say when Harvey raises the towel, threatening to smack him with it. “I’ll be waiting outside.” He slips into his yachting shoes and climbs on deck.

He leans on the railing and lets his eyes wander over the beautifully lit city of Tangier. The medina looks as if it’s buzzing with life even now and the Kasbah is towering high over the rest of the town, shining like a beacon in the night.

“Beautiful,” Harvey says and steps up behind Mike, wrapping his arms around him from behind and nuzzling at his temple. “And the city, too.”

Mike leans into Harvey’s touch for a moment before he turns around.

“Wow.”

Harvey is wearing faded jeans and an immaculately white linen shirt. It’s fluttering in the light evening breeze and if Mike squints, he can see the dark areolas around Harvey’s nipples shining through it. 

“You look breathtaking. Now are _you_ trying to starve me?”

“Never,” Harvey grins and gives Mike a quick kiss. “Come on, let’s go.”


	11. Chapter 11

It takes them only ten minutes to walk to _Saveur de Poisson_ just off the Rue de la Liberté. The tables outside are all occupied but just before they can enter the restaurant, a waiter comes out, carrying a tray full of delicious looking dishes. When he sees Mike, his eyes light up and his face bursts into a radiant smile.

“Mike!” he yells, stopping for a second. “You here?”

He hurries to serve his customers before he walks over to Harvey and Mike, the empty tray under his arm. 

“I miss you,” he plants himself in front of Mike and gives him what apparently is supposed to be an intimidating stare, but his eyes are glittering with joy. “I miss you for years. What keep you away so long?” And suddenly, his expression explodes with happiness and elated laughter falls from his lips. He leans the tray against a chair and pulls Mike into a crushing embrace.

“It’s great to see you, too, Youssef,” Mike mumbles, his words a little strangled by the tight hug. “Can’t… can’t breathe…”

“Ah you no need breathe when you can have food here, eh?”

Youssef lets go of Mike but not without patting him on the back heavily before he does. “You come to eat here, yes?”

“If you think it’s possible to find a table for two,” Mike smiles, straightening his shirt. “And if the food has substantially improved compared to the last time I ate here, yes.”

“Ah, Mike, always with the jest, always with the jest.” Youssef picks up his tray and nods eagerly. “Good to see you, really good. You will have a table soon. And I tell Said that you come here again. He will come see you too.”

“I take it you’ve been here before,” Harvey grins when Youssef hurries inside. 

“Yeah,” Mike nods, still staring after the waiter. “I have. Many times, actually. Before…” He falls silent and shakes his head. “Before.”

“With Trevor.”

“Ye—yeah.” Mike clears his throat and looks at Harvey. “With him, but also with others. We used to come here quite a lot, before…”

“Before.”

“Yes.”

“Mike! Your table is here!”

Youssef and two young men have emerged from the restaurant without Harvey and Mike noticing, and they’re carrying a small table and two folding chairs. 

“Table just for you,” Youssef beams when they’ve set up the little arrangement next to the other, regular tables. “Please, please – come sit.”

Harvey and Mike sit down and as soon as they’re seated Youssef spreads a waxen tablecloth out for them. “Said says he don’t come talk to you for not coming here for years,” he admonishes. “Says you just get bad food today.”

“I expected nothing less,” Mike smiles, and Youssef nods. “Tell him I missed him too.”

“You tell him yourself later, Mike,” Youssef pats Mike on the shoulder before he hurries back inside.

“There’s no menu,” Mike says when he looks back at Harvey and notices the slightly puzzled expression on his face. “You don’t order. You eat what has been cooked, couple of different dishes, usually. Lots of fish. And everything absolutely amazing. I promise, you’re going to love it.”

“I’m sure I will,” Harvey says and looks around. “You know all the great places.”

“I do,” Mike grins, trying to sound as cocky as possible. “I’m the best guide, remember?”

“That you are. Mike, listen—“

Harvey is interrupted by Youssef and one of the young men in tow. Youssef is carrying two steaming bowls of soup and the young man has a tray with two glasses of peppermint tea in his hands. They set down the food and drink and Youssef pats Mike on the back once more and this time Harvey too, before he makes his way inside again.

The soup, a spicy yet fresh fish soup, tastes mindblowing, and Mike is brimming with pride when Harvey tells him so, almost as if he’s cooked it himself. When they’re halfway finished, a skinny, almost emaciated man comes rushing out of the restaurant and towards their table. 

“Mike. What a sight for sore eyes!” he exclaims, a beaming smile on his face.

Mike gives Harvey an apologetic look before he rises.

“Said.”

They hug and when they break apart, Said kisses first Mike’s left and then his right cheek and then his left again, smiling the whole time.

“Good to see you again, Mike.”

“You too.”

“And who’s your friend? You want to introduce us?”

“Yeah, of course,” Mike says and Harvey rises as well.

“Said, this is Harvey. Harvey, this is Said. Owner and head chef of this place.”

“Pleasure to meet you,” Harvey says and extends his hand. But instead of taking it, Said pulls Harvey into a hug as well.

“A friend of Mike is a friend of mine,” he says, patting Harvey on the back before he lets go. “And especially if it’s a friend to bring Mike back here after all this time.”

“Thank you,” Harvey says, smiling at the other man. “Your food is excellent.”

“Ah, you haven’t seen anything yet, _anything_!” Said makes a dismissive waving gesture with his hand before he turns to Mike again.

“So, Mike—“

In this moment, Harvey’s cell phone rings and he excuses himself. He steps a couple of steps aside before he accepts the call while Said keeps chatting with Mike.

“So, Mike, what have you been up to? How has life been treating you?”

“Good, Said, really good recently,” Mike replies, his eyes following Harvey pacing back and forth while alternatively talking and listening. Harvey looks troubled, maybe even worried, and that’s not a look Mike likes to see on him.

“But please,” Said says and sits down in Harvey’s empty chair. “Please finish your soup. I can have a fresh one served for your friend if he can’t come back to the table while it’s still hot.”

“No, no, thank you, Said. That’s very kind of you but I don’t think—“

“Hey,” Harvey says, back at the table. He places his phone on the table next to his bowl, face down. “I’m sorry. I should have switched it to silent.”

Said rises from his chair and pulls it out for Harvey to sit back down again.

“I’ll leave you two alone for now,” he grins and bows a little. “But I’ll be back with dessert later.”

Mike and Harvey watch him leave and when Mike looks back at Harvey again there is still a shadow of a dark cloud in his eyes.

“What’s wrong?”

“That was Louis,” Harvey says, and Mike’s stomach drops. “There is a problem with one of our projects.”

“Big one?”

“Big what? Project or problem?”

“Both? Either?”

“Both.” Harvey sighs and picks up his spoon again. He eats a mouthful of soup before he puts the spoon down once more. “I’m not sure yet. Sounds like it.”

“Will—“ Mike clears his throat and reaches for his tea. He takes a sip and clears his throat again before he continues. “Will you have to go back?”

“I don’t know yet. I don’t think so. I don’t know. Maybe.” 

Harvey doesn’t sound too convinced and suddenly Mike seems to have lost his appetite. 

“What project?”

“Chicago,” Harvey says and pauses.

“The office building on W Jackson Boulevard.”

“Yeah,” Harvey says and pauses. “Wait—How do you know that?”

“I saw it on your laptop, building plans and all,” Mike says, taking another sip of his tea.

“You looked at my laptop only once, for about two seconds.” Harvey’s brows furrow and Mike actually can’t help to chuckle. “A few days ago.”

“It was three seconds,” he says, “or maybe two and a half. And the building has at least 24 stories, because that’s the number I saw on the floor plan you were working on that day, the exact address is 76-78 W Jackson Boulevard and your clients are Pearson & Malone, Attorneys at Law, with the new offices for their Chicago division.”

“How can you possibly know all that?” Harvey is staring him with wide eyes and his mouth slightly open.

Mike chuckles. “Don’t worry, I haven’t been stealing your laptop when you were asleep or otherwise sneaked a more thorough look at it behind your back. Your laptop is perfectly safe.”

“But how…?”

“I have a bit of a freak brain,” Mike smiles and Harvey’s brows shoot up.

“No shit.”

“Yeah,” Mike grins and briefly reaches for Harvey’s hand. “I could tell you the _Cassidy’s_ serial number as well or the number of your passport or the number plate of the car we rented today or recite, I don’t know, the Declaration of Independence or the whole of _Moby Dick_ or the _BarBri Legal Handbook_ if I’d read that if you wanted me to.”

“You mean, you have a photographic memory?” Harvey’s voice is still very doubtful, very wary.

“Eidetic,” Mike nods and Harvey huffs. “Works a little differently than most people think but yeah, basically it’s like that. Came in pretty handy while I was at university… Mathematics, by the way, and theoretical computer science. Never graduated, though. Long story.”

“Wow.” A grin starts to spread over Harvey’s face but then he frowns again. “Still, I might have to fly back to New York for a couple of days. Smooth things over with the building department and the lawyers. Not them,” he adds when Mike tilts his head in question, “but the ones threatening to sue.”

Mike nods and starts to speak but as if out of nowhere Youssef and the two waiters are back, clearing their table and setting an assortment of steaming dishes in front of them. The food smells amazing and usually Mike wouldn’t be able to wait to dig in, but there’s a weight settling in his stomach that feels like a stone, a rough, uncouth stone.

“You’re going to come back,” he says, his voice much smaller than he would like it to be. “You’re coming back, right? When everything’s settled?” _You’re coming back to me, right,_ is what Mike really wants to ask, but he leaves it at that, his throat too tight to get those two extra words out.

Harvey nods. “Yeah, of course. But I don’t know how long it’s going to take. Could be a couple of days. A week maybe.”

“Okay.” The stone in Mike’s stomach feels a little lighter now and he exhales shakily. “Good.”

They help themselves to some food and with the brightness of the spices and the herbs slowly the mood lightens again as well. When Youssef comes back to clear the table half an hour later, Mike is telling Harvey a story about how he got banned from a casino in Atlantic City for counting cards some eight years ago or so.

“I mean, I _was_ smoking weed, but they banned me for counting cards. What? I can’t help it, my brain just does it. I can’t help that it keeps track.”

Harvey smirks. “That’s what they all say, Rainman.”

“Hey, don’t judge me. It was ages ago. I was young and I was broke and—“

“What is it now? You were broke or your brain just does it?”

“What are you?” Mike gives Harvey some serious side-eye and Harvey, as much as he tries, can’t seem to keep a straight face. “Some kind of lawyer?”

“Mike. Mike’s friend.” Said walks out of the restaurant, interrupting their conversation with the most delicious array of desserts. “Usually, the customers get only one, but you are special, you get them all.” He sets the tiny plates down one by one, there are five or six different kinds, and smiles. “Plus, I want to know what you think, Mike. If you would recommend this.”

“You know I would,” Mike smiles back. “I love your food.”

“This young man here,” Said turns to Harvey, resting one hand on Mike’s shoulder. “This young man sends me the best customers. Rich and with a taste!”

“But only the ones I like,” Mike grins and Said pats his back gratefully. “I’d never send you the awful ones, Said.”

“And for that I shall be eternally thankful,” Said replies and nods. “And now eat. And tell me what you think before you leave.”

Harvey and Mike dig in and it is very amusing to Mike to find out that, apparently, Harvey has a very sweet tooth. He seems especially fond of the _Ma’amoul_ , small shortbread pastries filled with dates, pistachios and figs, while Mike can’t stop eating the _Rozz bel Hleeb_ , the most delicious rice pudding he has ever had. 

When they tell Said how much they enjoyed the food the chef beams and offers them some extra dessert to take home with them. 

“Thank you so much,” Mike says and casts a quick glance at Harvey, “we’ll have those for breakfast tomorrow,” and after they’ve settled the bill, both Said and Youssef come back to their table to say goodbye with many hugs and a promise coaxed from Mike’s lips that he’ll be back sooner this time around. 

Just when they’re about to rise and leave, Harvey’s phone buzzes again and he excuses himself once more. The few steps he takes aside muffle his words but every now and again Mike catches some bits and pieces of the conversation while Harvey paces back and forth, phone pressed to his ear and a deep crease between his brows.

“…Louis, calm down… can fix this… no, I’m not going to leave him here… tell Donna to get me on a flight the… yeah, I’ll be there… thank you… no, I won’t… yeah, I think so too… sure… bye, Louis.”

“Sorry,” Harvey says when he returns to the table and sits back down again. He pinches the bridge of his nose and sighs. “Shit is hitting the fan. I have to go back.”

Mike swallows. “When?”

“Louis wanted me to fly over from here, from Tangier, tomorrow, but I told him no.”

“Harvey, if you did that because of me, you don’t have to—“

“I told him _no_ ,” Harvey says, his eyes holding Mike’s with determination, and nods. “End of discussion. But still – we’ll have to go back to Gib tomorrow and I’ll fly from Malaga the day after. We can take the ferry and have someone else bring the _Cassidy_ over.”

“Or we can sail her over ourselves,” Mike says, nodding back reassuringly. “The conditions should be good tomorrow, I’ll check again when we’re back on the boat, but they should be good. We can do that. I want us to.”

“Okay,” Harvey says slowly after a long pause, and what he says next sounds like an echo to Mike. “If you’re still sure about this in the morning, if that’s what you want… then that’s what we’ll do.”

“Good.”

“Come on, let’s go home,” Harvey rises from his chair and walks around the table to pull Mike’s chair back when he rises as well. “You know,” he says as they start walking down the street. “You could of course always come with me.”

“To New York?” Mike stops and after another step Harvey does, too, and turns around.

“Yeah.”

Mike shoves his hands into the pockets of his trousers and tilts his head. He bites his lips and shakes his head. “I don’t think so.”

“Why not? I could tell Donna to book you a ticket, too, so we—“

“Harvey, I can’t just leave. I have work, I have a VIP tour booked on Friday that I really can’t cancel and… I don’t think so.”

“Okay, okay,” Harvey hurries to say, raising his hands as if in defense. “You don’t have to, of course. Just wanted to say you could if you wanted to. Anytime.”

“Thank you,” Mike says briskly and walks past Harvey towards the marina. “Maybe next time. Just—“ He stops again and turns around to face Harvey. “Just promise me you’ll come back when… when things are done?”

“As soon as I can,” Harvey says, smiling.


	12. Chapter 12

The trip back to Gibraltar the next day goes really smoothly, may all the gods at once be thanked. The weather is excellent, clear sight and advantageous winds, and when they’re about two thirds there, Mike calls Harvey to the wheel.

“Hey, could you take over for a moment?” he asks, his knees a little weak and his palms slightly sweaty. “I need to take a leak.”

“Sure thing, Captain,” Harvey grins, even though a light frown seems to hover over his face for a second or two, and switches positions with Mike. He looks good like that, Mike thinks, standing there at the wheel, and he thinks back to the moment he first saw him steering the _Cassidy_ into the marina just such a short time ago. He takes a deep breath and makes his way below deck. 

Once he’s in the cabin he starts to pace back and forth, counting in his head, to five, to ten, to twenty, trying to hear whatever is going on upstairs, but the wind and the waves are too loud. Finally, he makes for the bathroom and relieves himself and he has to count to ten again in his mind again when he’s done and force himself to climb back on deck slowly and not rush upstairs like a madman. 

Harvey is still there, still so very beautiful, holding the wheel and steering the _Cassidy_ homewards. He smiles at Mike and all Mike can do is smile back, a hundred times lighter than only minutes before.

“You look great,” he says, and Harvey tilts his head. 

“Not so bad yourself,” he replies and narrows his eyes a little. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” Mike nods and sits down on one of the benches. “I’m good. Bit shaky but good.”

The remaining part of the sail goes just as smoothly as the first and Mike lets Harvey have the helm until the _Cassidy_ is safely tied up in her berth next to the _Sundance_ again.

“Ever been inside of one of those?”

“What?”

Harvey nods towards the high buildings with the blue plexi-glass balcony railings lining the marina. “In one of those apartments?”

“Yeah, I have. I lived in one of the apartments there once, remember?” Mike shakes his head and grins.

“Oh yeah, sorry, of course,” Harvey’s brows furrow for a brief moment. "You told me. Hell, I’d love to see one of those from the inside,” Harvey says. “They look absolutely horrible from here, but maybe they’re better on the inside?”

“Always the architect,” Mike grins and Harvey nods. “And no, they’re not. But hey, I can make that happen,” he adds. “When you’re back we can go and see one, okay?”

“That would be great, Mike, thanks.” Harvey smiles, looking up at the buildings, and Mike wonders how beautifully excited Harvey can look on certain occasions and how lucky he is to be able to witness that. “Hey, how about a beer and then we go to _Charlie’s_ for dinner?” Harvey suggests and Mike nods. “And maybe we can go for another swim later, I’d really like to try out that whirl pool…”

“Good idea,” Mike agrees. “I’m sure it’s a great one to make out in.”

This night, Harvey does manage to make Mike come for him three times (whirl pool, his mouth, between their bodies with Harvey buried deep inside of him) and when they finally fall asleep, Mike sleeps for twelve hours straight.

*****

When he wakes up the next day, the sun is already quite high in the sky and Harvey is gone. Mike rubs his eyes and stretches before he starts to scramble out of bed. This is when he sees the folded paper with his name on it on Harvey’s pillow.

_Mike_

Mike smiles and rolls onto his stomach. He buries his face into Harvey’s pillow right next to where the note is lying and inhales. Still smiling, he props himself up on his elbows and unfolds Harvey’s note.

_Mike –_

_I tried to wake you but you were too fast asleep, so I watched you sleep for a little while before I got out of bed. You look so beautiful when you sleep and I almost forgot the time over watching you._

_You must really need all the rest you can get after the last couple of days, so I’ve decided not to wake you._

_My plane takes off in a couple of hours and the car will be here soon. I wish I could take you with me. I am going to miss you something terrible and I can’t wait to return here, to return to you. I am not sure when that will be, could be a couple of days, a week, maybe two, but I will be back as soon as I can and I can’t wait to see you again._

_You can of course stay on the “Cassidy” and sleep here if you like. I’ve left the keys on the kitchen counter._

_The sun is almost up and I need to get going. When I come back there’s something I want to talk to you about._

_I’ll call you when I’m in New York._

_Harvey_

Mike brings the paper to his lips and kisses Harvey’s name. He sits up and he can see the keys lying where Harvey had said they would be. He climbs out of bed and walks over. His cell phone is lying next to the keys and there’s a message from Harvey.

_M. – am at Malaga airport, going to take off soon. Call you as soon as I touch down. Love, H._

After a quick shower Mike gets dressed and finds another note from Harvey on the stairs.

_Mike, go eat some breakfast. Not just coffee. Take a nap for me later today. Enjoy the sun! H._

There’s another note on the table outside and one on the bench in the stern of the Sundance. This one reads

_Mike, I already miss you so much. Can’t wait to hold you in my arms again. To kiss you. To be inside of you. To get my hands on you and to feel yours on me. I love you. Harvey_

Even though the thought that Harvey is on his way to America, most likely halfway across the ocean already, hurts like a blunt knife, Mike can’t stop smiling. Harvey is everywhere and it takes much more than an occupational crisis and a stupid plane to take him away.

Mike is in the middle of his grocery shopping when his phone buzzes in his pocket. He takes it out and answers the call, smiling.

“Hey!”

“Hey!” Harvey’s voice is as clear as if he was just standing outside and Mike’s heart misses a beat. “Just touched down in JFK. Flight was good.”

“Great,” Mike says, placing the box of _Weetabix_ into his shopping cart, and switches phone hands. “Good to hear your voice.”

“I miss you,” Harvey says and Mike nods. 

“Yeah, me too. Thank you for all the notes,” he adds after a moment of silence. The sounds of the airport seep through the phone and Mike wishes Harvey were already on his way back.

“Where are you?”

“ _Morrison’s_ ,” Mike says and pushes his cart further down the aisle. “Grocery shopping. You eat like a shark.”

“Hey, could you do me a favor and get something for me, too?” Harvey sounds almost apologetic. 

“Sure,” Mike replies, reaching for a carton of milk. “What do you need?”

“That god awful greenish soda stuff that you like so much for no apparent reason? I want to have some of that in my fridge in case you get a craving.”

“Already in the cart,” Mike grins and Harvey’s corresponding chuckle is music in his ears. “I’m gonna slum it on the _Cassidy_ while you’re gone, man.”

“Yeah, you do that. Listen, I have got to go through immigration now, have to switch off my phone. Talk to you later, ‘kay?”

“Okay,” Mike nods. “But spend at least some of your time solving those business problems. I want you back here a.s.a.p.”

“Understood,” Harvey says and Mike can practically see him rolling his eyes. “Can’t wait to be back, so I might just do that.”

“See that you do,” Mike hesitates a moment but then he blows a kiss through the line. “Come back soon.”

“Love you,” Harvey says and Mike can hear some rustling sound, probably Harvey switching his travel bag from one shoulder to another. “Later, ‘kay?”

“Yeah, later. Oh, and I love you more!”

“Impossible,” Harvey says and Mike stares at the screen of his phone for quite a few seconds even after it goes dark before he shoves it back into his pocket.

*****

Mike can’t remember a time in his life when he has been so horny like he is now.

Whenever he closes his eyes, whenever he thinks of Harvey and of being with him, whenever he looks at the love bite that Harvey has left on his skin where his neck meets his shoulder or whenever he touches it, surreptitiously while in public or deliberately and reverently when in the privacy of the _Cassidy_ or the _Sundance_ , his cock begins to harden in his pants or just under the covers or the spray of the shower and he needs to touch himself. He jerks off more than he ever has, even as a teenager.

Harvey’s scent in his bed or in the shower turns him on just as much as the light, teasing brush of the fabric of Harvey’s shirts against his nipples or his fingertips.

The sound of Harvey’s name, a whisper or a moan spilling from his lips into the warm summer night, makes him dizzy and arouses him beyond belief.

Harvey’s texts and phone calls keep him grounded and make his head spin at the same time, and more than once Harvey talks him to the edge of and then all the way through a blinding climax, his cock hard and throbbing in his hand and his come hot on his fingers.

The idea, the image of Harvey doing that in the back of a black town car (of course Harvey has told him, he knows exactly what that does to Mike) or sitting on the sofa in his condo, makes Mike crave release even more desperately.

Harvey stays with him on the phone until he comes down, until he can breathe again, murmuring words of praise and admiration, telling Mike to taste himself for him, to lick his fingers and to close his eyes, to feel, just to feel.

It feels to Mike as if his longing, his need for Harvey grows with every time they talk, with every text he reads and sends and with every time he thinks of Harvey. So on Friday evening, after he has finished his VIP tour, he books himself a seat on Saturday afternoon’s flight from Gibraltar to JFK. 

He packs a light suitcase and feeds Harvey a cock-and-bull story about an extended Gibraltar and Province of Cadiz tour he has taken on last minute to account for his going MIA during the flights to London and then to New York. 

When he arrives in New York the next day after an almost fourteen hour trip, he’s tired yet elated. Harvey is not at home yet by the time Mike has made it to his building, but the night is warm and buoyant so Mike decides to wait outside for a while, even though the doorman has offered him to take a seat in the building’s lobby.

The traffic rushes past Mike as he leans against the wall next to the door, the sounds and lights of the city making his head swim a little. He takes a deep breath. For a brief moment worry flares up inside of him. What if Harvey doesn’t want him here? What if he’d rather be alone? What if someone else is with him, what if… But as he shakes his head against that onslaught of thoughts, he feels a calm settling inside of him that makes him smile.

Everything is going to be all right.

Not more than five minutes later, a black town car pulls up at the curb and two people get out – Harvey and a sturdy man with very short hair and a face that reminds Mike a little bit of a pit bull terrier. They’re in deep conversation, so they don’t notice Mike at first, not until Mike steps in their way as they’re heading for the door.

“’Scuse me, Sir, can you tell me how to get to Times Square?”

Harvey and the other man stop in their tracks and for a moment Harvey seems to be frozen to the spot. The only thing that moves are his eyelids as he blinks rapidly.

Then a beaming smile spreads on his face.

“Mike?”

Mike grins back and nods. “Yeah.”

Harvey’s arms are around him a fraction of a second later and he closes his eyes and inhales. 

“Are you really here?” Harvey’s voice tickles his ear and makes him shiver in Harvey’s embrace. 

“Yeah,” he nods against Harvey’s throat, his lips desperate to taste Harvey’s skin. “Missed you so much…”

He can feel Harvey shake his head and Harvey’s arms tighten around him for a moment before Harvey takes a step back and searches for Mike’s eyes.

“I can’t believe you’re really here,” he beams and runs his hands down Mike’s arms until his hands find Mike’s. 

Someone is clearing his throat right next to them and that pulls Mike from the feeling of drowning in Harvey’s eyes. Right, the other man with the pit bull face. Mike has almost forgotten about him.

“So, this is Mike,” pit bull guy says and tilts his head. Then a huge grin with a lot of teeth almost splits his face and his eyes sparkle with mischief. “I was expecting a halo from what that old sap has been telling me about you,” he says and shoots Harvey a slightly reproachful glance.

“Yeah, sorry,” Harvey smiles and lets go of Mike’s hands. He turns towards the other man and nods. “Louis, this is Mike. Mike – Louis.”

Mike and Louis shake hands and Harvey gives Mike an apologetic look. “Mike, I’m sorry, but there’s something Louis and I need to talk over tonight. We—“

“Nonsense, Harvey,” Louis interrupts and pats Harvey’s arm a little awkwardly. “I’ll go over the files and fill you in on it tomorrow. You two go in and have a… I mean, you enjoy… Okay,” he cuts himself short and shakes his head briefly. “You go ahead and do whatever you do and I’ll be on my way. Tomorrow at seven thirty, Harvey?”

“Yeah,” Harvey nods, his eyes returning to Mike again. “Tomorrow. Night, Louis.”

He leads Mike through the door while Louis gets into the car again, grinning from ear to ear.

“That was nice of him,” Mike says as Harvey nods at the doorman and guides Mike towards the elevators. “I know you’re insanely busy and of course you could have—“

“I am insanely pleased to see you,” Harvey smiles and ushers Mike into the cabin as soon as the elevator doors slide open. The moment they close again, his lips are on Mike’s and his tongue is fucking Mike’s mouth. “God, I missed you so much,” he moans into their kiss and pushes one of his legs between Mike’s. He’s already hard, and so is Mike.

“Yeah,” Mike breathes, hissing as Harvey’s lips wander down his throat, Harvey’s fingers impatiently tugging at the collar of Mike’s shirt. 

Harvey’s lips and tongue travel over Mike’s skin until they find the exact spot where the love bite is, already slightly fading. 

Mike’s moan turns into a helpless whimper when Harvey sucks at his skin again, marking him anew.

“I can’t wait,” Harvey licks over the bruise and Mike shivers against him. “God, I can’t wait…” He cups Mike’s erection through his pants and for a moment Mike thinks he’s going to come right there and then. “Today?” Harvey murmurs and Mike immediately knows what he means.

“Yeah,” he whispers, his body melting into Harvey’s touch and his mind following suit. “Yeah, if you want to…”

“Fuck, Mike,” Harvey hisses and squeezes Mike harder, drawing a low, desperate moan from Mike’s lips. “Like this…” He rubs up and down Mike’s cock once, twice, the fabric of Mike’s clothes both adding to and numbing the friction and all Mike can do is bite his lips and nod.

Harvey is panting now and Mike’s eyes are squeezed shut so tightly he sees stars. He can feel Harvey reach for the emergency break button blindly and he knows he’s just moments away from tumbling over the edge.

“Oh god,” he moans when the elevator stops and he can feel his climax building in his groin. “Oh my god…” Mike’s fingers grab hold of Harvey’s arms and dig into Harvey’s muscles _deep_ as he passes the point of no return. He’s going to come like this, in an elevator, in his pants, against Harvey’s hand that is now just resting against his cock, a light, tantalizing pressure. He moans low in his throat as he starts to come, and Harvey’s echoing moan guides him through the waves of climax like a beacon in the night. 

His come spurts into his pants, hot and sticky, and he can feel it seeping through the cloth, and his cock keeps shooting wave after wave until his whole body is trembling and his knees go weak. He clings to Harvey helplessly and Harvey holds him upright, humming in his ear and just holding him as his climax slowly ebbs.

“God, you’re amazing,” Harvey murmurs against Mike’s temple and all Mike can do is nod. “Incredible. You’re so incredible.”

“God,” Mike rasps when he can talk again. “I can’t believe… Can’t remember the last time that happened…” He shakes his head and he can feel himself blushing. Another moan falls from his lips when Harvey presses against his softening dick again and he can feel the sticky liquid in his pants against his oversensitive skin. “Fuck…”

“Hmmm,” Harvey hums and reaches for Mike’s chin to lift his face. He brushes his lips over Mike’s softly, a faint smile on his face. “Mike…” He holds Mike like that for another few moments before he reaches for the hold button a second time and the elevator starts to move again.

“Shit,” Mike murmurs, blushing even more. “We didn’t even make it out of the elevator…”

“Just be glad that we’ve made it _in_ ,” Harvey grins and guides Mike out of the cabin with a hand on the small of his back once the doors slide open.

Mike winces as they cross the hallway and his pants rub against his cock. He needs to get out of these clothes as soon as possible.

Harvey unlocks the door to his apartment and opens it to let Mike in. “Welcome home,” he says and smiles. “I still can’t believe you’re really here…”

“Wow!” Mike’s eyes widen as they wander through the large open space, living and dining area with a large open kitchen, and then, of course, along the front of floor-to-ceiling windows showcasing the view of the glittering Manhattan skyline. “Beautiful.”

“Yeah,” Harvey says, pulling Mike into his arms and kissing him again. “Stunning…”

When Mike winches again as their bodies rub together, Harvey chuckles and breaks their kiss. “The bathroom is through there if you want to freshen up a little.”

Mike blushes once more and nods. He picks up his bag and makes his way into the bathroom.

“Just throw your clothes into the hamper,” Harvey calls after him. “It’s right next to the sink.”

Mike undresses quickly and takes a quick shower, cleaning off the come and the fourteen hour trip. He washes his hair and contemplates shaving for a moment but then he decides against it. It’s almost midnight and he wants to see Harvey again as soon as possible. So he towels himself off and his hair as well and slips into some fresh clothes.

Harvey has just poured two glasses of scotch and turns around when Mike emerges from the bedroom.

“Hey,” he says, tilting his head and smiling. “You look amazing.”

Mike looks at his own body, faded jeans and a t-shirt and bare feet on the hardwood floor, and smiles. “You’re insane,” he says and takes a step towards where Harvey is standing. “Can I have one of those?” he nods at the glasses in Harvey’s hands.

“I am,” Harvey says and closes the distance between them. He kisses Mike quickly before he hands him one of the glasses. “And yes, you can.”

Mike brings the glass to his lips and takes a small sip, closing his eyes as he lets the taste unfold in his mouth. “Hmmm,” he hums, smacking his lips. “This is good…” He opens his eyes again and he’s still there, still in Harvey’s condo, and Harvey is standing right there, still looking at him and still smiling.

“You hungry?” Harvey asks and nods in the direction of the kitchen. “I could make us something or we could order in?”

Mike’s eyes drop to Harvey’s crotch. He’s still half hard and he grins when Mike looks up and their eyes meet again. “Sorry.”

“I want to suck you off,” Mike blurts out and cringes.

Harvey chuckles. He spreads his arms, whiskey glass still in hand, and grins. “I’m all yours.”

Mike doesn’t have to be told twice. He sets his glass down onto the coffee table and closes the distance between them. He takes Harvey’s hand in his and pulls him to the sofa where he tells him to sit down and get comfortable.

He kneels down and Harvey spreads his legs to make room for him, leaning back against the back rest of the sofa. He spreads his arms, too, and rests them on the back rest, still holding on to his glass.

“Give me that,” Mike murmurs and reaches up to take the glass from Harvey’s grip. He takes a small sip from it before he sets it aside and reaches for Harvey’s crotch. His fingers tremble slightly as he makes quick work of Harvey’s button and zipper and Harvey helps, lifting his hips so Mike can pull down his trousers and boxer briefs a bit.

Harvey’s cock grows to full hardness under Mike’s gaze and the first tentative touch of his fingers.

“You have such a beautiful cock,” Mike marvels and Harvey chuckles. “No, really. The most beautiful cock I’ve ever seen.”

He shifts a little and bends forward to touch the very tip of his tongue to Harvey’s crown. “Just look at you…”

A drop of clear liquid pools at the tip of Harvey’s cock and slowly runs down, a small rivulet that Mike stops halfway with the tip of his tongue. “God, Harvey…”

Harvey’s cock twitches in Mike’s grip and Harvey hisses when Mike’s tongue touches him again. His skin is soft and hot against Mike’s lips when he takes him in slowly, and Harvey’s labored breathing turns into a moan.

“God, you’re good at that,” Harvey murmurs and his fingers find their way into Mike’s hair. “This is not going to last very long if you keep that up…”

Mike just hums around Harvey’s cock and keeps it up. He just keeps it up until Harvey comes down his throat and Harvey was right – it doesn’t take long. Mike swallows as much as he can and when Harvey’s climax ebbs and he starts to soften in Mike’s mouth, Mike swallows again.

Harvey moans. “You’re trying to kill me…” His cock slides from Mike’s mouth and Mike looks up at him, grinning.

“Yeah.”

“Come here.”

Harvey pulls Mike up and onto the sofa next to him. He wraps his arm around Mike’s shoulders and pulls him close. 

Mike’s hand comes to rest on Harvey’s spent cock and Mike buries his face in the crook of Harvey’s shoulder.

“How long can you stay?”

“Wednesday,” Mike murmurs, his voice slightly muffled. “I have another VIP tour next Friday. I don’t want to cancel that one, so…”

“Why didn’t you let me buy you a ticket?” Harvey asks and Mike just inhales deeply and relaxes even more against Harvey’s body. “I’m so glad you’re here…”

“Me too.” Mike lets go of Harvey’s cock and brings his hand up to cup Harvey’s face. He turns Harvey’s head so he can capture his lips in a long, languid kiss. “Me too,” he repeats when the kiss has ended and smiles. “Listen, I know you have to work but as long as you’re mine during the nights…”

“I can promise you that,” Harvey smiles and kisses Mike again. “A propos. What do you say we take this to bed? You must be tired.”

“Yeah, a bit,” Mike yawns and rises from the sofa yawning and stretching. “It was a long flight.”

“Come on, then.” Harvey quickly pulls up his pants and buttons them before he takes Mike’s hand and leads him into the bedroom with him.


	13. Chapter 13

Yes, Harvey does have to work, and yes, he has to work a lot while Mike is there but he always finds or makes time to have breakfast with Mike or a quick lunch and he takes Mike to the firm with him on Monday and introduces him to the people he works with most closely – Donna, his secretary and assistant, Katrina, Tara and Keith, the three architects in charge of the Pearson & Malone project, and of course Robert Zane, their in-house legal counsel. 

“Listen,” he tells Mike over a truly fantastic bagel during lunch break on Monday. “I have to fly to Chicago with Louis tomorrow, we have a court hearing I have to be present at – but you’re welcome to come with if you want to. We’ll be back in the evening, just a couple of hours, but—“

Mike shakes his head and Harvey falls silent. “I can’t. I want to go see Trevor’s mum tomorrow.”

“She lives here?” 

“Queens,” Mike replies and bites his lips. “I haven’t seen her since the memorial and… His dad died a year ago and… yeah, I want to go see her.”

“We could do it now,” Harvey suggests, crumbles up the bagel wrapping and tosses it into the nearest trash can. He wipes his hands with the paper napkin and catches Mike’s gaze. “Or tonight. I could come with.”

Mike shakes his head and bites his lips again. “Thank you, Harvey,” he says, throwing away his bagel wrapper and napkin as well. “But this is something I have to do on my own.”

Harvey nods and gives Mike’s shoulder a quick squeeze. “But you’ll let me cook you something good to eat tomorrow night when I’m back?”

“Of course.”

*****

Mike is asleep on the couch when Harvey comes home from the airport on Tuesday night. He’s curled up on his side and he doesn’t wake up when Harvey comes in, only when the sofa dips beside him and Harvey runs his fingers through his hair.

“Hey,” Harvey says softly when Mike opens his eyes.

“Hey,” Mike blinks sleepily. “You’re back.”

“Yeah,” Harvey nods and bows down to place a soft kiss on Mike’s lips. “Flight was delayed by only half an hour. Dropped Louis off at the firm. I’m taking the rest of the night off.”

“Good.” Mike sits up and rubs his eyes. “I’m glad you’re back.”

Harvey kisses him again before he rises. “How about I cook us some dinner, then? Something light. Pasta?”

Mike nods and stretches his arms over his head. He’s feeling a little sore, maybe from the way he’s been lying on the sofa since he’s come home. He winces.

When he gets up Harvey is there with a glass of cool white wine. They toast and Mike settles on one of the high stools at the kitchen counter while Harvey gets busy preparing their food. He seems to be in a good mood, humming along while dicing the garlic and pouring the olive oil into the frying pan.

“So,” Mike asks as Harvey tosses the scampi in the pan. “How did it go?”

“The hearing went well,” Harvey says and holds out the wooden spoon for Mike to taste the sauce. 

Mike nods and licks his lips. 

“We’ve made a huge step forward. I’m beginning to get seriously optimistic here.”

“Were you ever not?”

“No, not really,” Harvey grins and twists the spaghetti and pushes them down with the spoon until they’re completely covered by the boiling water. “I mean, it’s not unusual to hit tough spots with such a big project – and it’s not our first one. My team is really good at what they’re doing and in most cases we’re able to solve things and proceed.”

Harvey keeps telling Mike about the hearing and what went down afterwards with the representative of the city council until he has finished cooking. He pours them some more wine and hands Mike two forks and spoons.

“I don’t need a spoon,” Mike frowns and hands it back to Harvey. “I’m not a heathen.”

Harvey grins and takes Mike’s spoon back. “Here.” He hands Mike his plate and they both carry their plate and glass over to the dining table where they sit down and dig in.

The food is delicious and Mike eats slowly, savoring every bite. “This is really good,” he tells Harvey before he takes a sip of wine. “Thank you.”

Harvey nods. “So want to tell me about how your day went?”

Mike stops chewing for a moment and inhales deeply through his nose before he swallows. He reaches for his glass again and nearly chokes on the wine he drinks.

“Okay,” he croaks and blinks against the slight sting in the corners of his eyes. “I—“ Mike can feel his face beginning to contort so he flexes his facial muscles a bit and takes a deep shuddering breath. “I—“ A short, hoarse noise rises from his chest and it sounds almost like a grunt or a moan. “She—“ Mike shakes his head. His words somehow can’t make it through the tightness in his throat and his eyes are burning now. He wipes at them angrily with the back of his hand.

“Mike,” Harvey says, calm and with such a warmth carrying in that one word that makes Mike’s chest tighten and his eyes burn even more.

“She wasn’t even angry,” Mike whispers through his sore throat and it hurts more than he can say. “I—I killed her son and she wasn’t even angry with me…” He inhales deeply again, holds his breath for a moment and then he exhales. He can feel the food turn in his stomach and his mouth starts to fill with saliva. He swallows against the nausea again and again, wiping at his eyes furiously. His palms are wet with tears.

“Mike,” Harvey says again. “Do you need to use the bathroom?”

“No,” Mike croaks and shakes his head, He takes another calming breath and a sip from the glass of water that’s being pressed into his hand. “No, I’m going to be okay… Jesus…” He brings the glass to his lips again and drains it almost halfway, hiccupping when he sets it down. “Oh, my god…”

He looks up and Harvey is there, he’s still there, looking at him across the table, calm and solid, and his eyes so full of pain and at the same time love it makes the spinning sensation inside of Mike’s mind cease. 

“She wasn’t even angry,” Mike whispers again and bites his lips. “I killed her only son. And… and she let me in and…”

“You didn’t kill him,” Harvey says quietly and Mike shakes his head once more. “You know you didn’t.”

“I shouldn’t have… I mean if I hadn’t gone below deck and he had been wearing his fucking life vest, maybe…”

“It wasn’t your fault.”

“I was responsible. I should have—“

“Mike. It wasn’t your fault.”

Mike falls silent and starts to pick at what is left of his food. He piles the remaining scampi in one spot and the dices of bell pepper in another. In between he arranges the leftover spaghetti. It takes him a long time to look up again and when he does he can barely see Harvey through the veil of his tears.

“That’s what she said, too.”

Harvey nods and reaches across the table, offering his hand for Mike to take hold of. 

“I—I’ve known her since I was eight years old,” Mike says slowly, lacing his fingers with Harvey’s. “When—when my parents died, Trevor’s family offered to take me in. They would have taken me in, they would have raised me and I—“

Harvey squeezes Mike’s fingers lightly and nods again.

“She even hugged me.” 

Mike’s voice is still nothing more than a whisper. 

“She hugged me and let me in and made me coffee and—“

Harvey rises and pulls Mike up with him and right into his arms. He holds him close until Mike’s choked sobs ebb and Mike shifts his position a little.

“You okay?” Harvey asks, gently rubbing Mike’s back.

Mike nods, his face still buried against Harvey’s shoulder and his arms tightly wrapped around Harvey’s torso. “Yeah,” he mumbles into Harvey’s shirt and Harvey hums, his chest vibrating in the most calming, reassuring way.

“You deserve to be held,” he murmurs and continues stroking Mike’s back. “You deserve to have coffee made for you. It wasn’t your fault.”

“Yeah,” Mike sniffles after a while and nods again. “I know. A part of me knows, but… yeah….” He straightens his back and looks up, the lights in the dining room burning his eyes. He blinks. His arms and legs feel unbelievably heavy but he is not nauseous anymore, just a little queasy. 

“You look tired,” Harvey says. “Come on, let’s go to bed.” He kisses Mike briefly and Mike nods.

“Yeah.”

Harvey clears away the dishes while Mike is in the bathroom and when Harvey climbs into bed Mike is almost asleep already. He snuggles up to Harvey, their naked bodies aligning perfectly, and worms his way into Harvey’s arm, and Harvey holds him close. He places a gentle kiss on Mike’s head and Mike exhales.

*****

Mike feels incredible. He feels so good and it’s getting better and better with every passing second. The intensity of this warm, tingling feeling is pulling him in and he’s gladly following its call. Waves of pleasure wash over him, each one more consuming than the other, building and cresting, and his body follows their rhythm, is chasing them, chasing that pleasure until he is sure he can’t take much more.

His whole body is on fire and it feels so good, so good. There’s a source of heat somewhere deep inside of him and it’s radiating through every vein, muscle and cell. It pools in certain places but Mike can’t really make out where. 

He is going to be swept away by this and he lets the pleasure carry him wherever it wants, lets it take control over his body with a moan that resonates inside of him endlessly. 

Again, that wave, that surge that follows the last is even more intense and Mike’s breathing hitches. It’s going to crest, soon, soon, and he can already feel the fall, the endless fall in his stomach. His body longs for it, the tension has to break and just one little bit more, one little bit further and—

Mike is coming. A sound tears from his chest that sounds almost alien to him and it pulls him back into this world, to his hips rocking against Harvey, thrusting his spurting cock against Harvey’s leg, coming between their bodies, his hips still moving, the orgasm ripping through him so blinding he has to squeeze his eyes shut again, a hot flash of shame flaming up inside of him through a pleasure so intense it makes his eyes water.

“Fuckkkkk,” he moans and tries to stop his hips from moving, tries to bring some distance between him and Harvey, but Harvey pulls him on top of him while he’s still coming and thrusts his own rock hard cock up against Mike’s, once, twice, panting into Mike’s gasping mouth, until he comes, too, spurting his semen between their bodies and digging his fingers so hard into the muscles of Mike’s back that they are for sure going to leave marks.

“Oh god,” Mike moans when Harvey thrusts up again and another spurt of come oozes from his slit. “Oh shit, oh my god…”

Harvey groans as his hips jerk against Mike’s one more time. Then their bodies still but for their hands, touching and caressing each other everywhere, and their lips and tongues, as hungry for each other as the rest of them.

“What a way to wake up,” Mike murmurs, his words slightly slurred, and Harvey chuckles.

“I think that must have been the most arousing thing I’ve ever seen. And felt. You, still asleep, fucking my leg…”

Mike can feel how he blushes deeply.

“Sorry?” he offers, hiding his face in the crook of Harvey’s neck. “I even want you in my dreams?” He kisses his words against Harvey’s sweaty skin and Harvey cups the back of his head gently. 

“I like that,” he says and Mike relaxes a bit more. “God, you’re so hot, you have no idea…” He traces the shell of Mike’s ear with the tip of his tongue. “I was hoping that you’d come like this,” he whispers. “God, every move you made, every sound…”

Mike’s spent cock twitches weakly between their bodies and Mike hisses. “God, you’ll be the death of me one day…” He kisses Harvey briefly on the lips and then he rolls off of him. “Come on, now. Bathroom. Shower. It’s almost daylight outside and I’m starving.”

“I’m taking you to my waffle guy today,” Harvey announces as he follows Mike into the bathroom. 

“Your waffle guy.”

“Yeah. Best breakfast you ever had, I promise.”

“Okay, then,” Mike smiles and pulls Harvey into the shower with him. “But first let’s get cleaned up.”


	14. Chapter 14

The waffles really are exceptional and Harvey even takes the time to drive Mike to the airport himself before he heads back to work. The return flight to Gibraltar goes smoothly and when Mike is back on the _Cassidy_ on Thursday night, he gives Harvey a quick call to let him know he arrived safely and then falls into a deep, dreamless sleep that carries him all through the night and into the bright Friday morning.

When he wakes up there’s a text message from Harvey, telling him that Harvey’s dying to hear his voice, telling him to call him whenever he wakes up, no matter what time it is. 

It’s in the middle of the night in New York and Mike is sure that Harvey, if he’s asleep at all, can’t have been in bed for very long, but he calls him nevertheless. 

Harvey answers, his voice slurry with sleep, and they talk for a couple of minutes until Harvey falls asleep again with the line still open.

Mike ends the call, smiling, and sends Harvey a text message telling him to go back to sleep. 

Mike’s next couple of days are filled with work and longing and phone calls and messages and even a skype call or two, and before he knows it it’s Friday night again and he finds himself at _Charlie’s_ , a freshly poured glass of beer and a juice steak in front of him.

He cuts into the steak and brings the bite to his mouth when someone steps up to his table and pulls out the second chair.

“Share?”

“Harvey!” Mike gets up so fast that he nearly knocks his chair over and pulls Harvey from where he is sitting and into his arms. “When did you get back?”

“Just now,” Harvey says, giving Mike a kiss full of smiles. “Just dropped my bags on the _Cassidy_ and went looking for you.” He lets go of Mike and gives his hands a firm squeeze. “What are you having?”

“Just steak and beer,” Mike grins, shaking his head. “You can have some.”

Harvey shakes his head and gestures for the waiter, who hurries over and takes his order of steak and beer as well.

“I can’t believe you’re back,” Mike smiles around a bite of meat. “God, it’s good to see you!”

“Yeah, you, too,” Harvey smiles back, taking a first sip from his fresh beer. “We wrapped everything up for now and I was on the first plane out after construction took up again. I guess I can stay for a week or two before the next catastrophe strikes.”

“Good.” 

They both nod briefly and eat in silence for a while, glancing up from their food for a fleeting glance every now and then.

Finally, they both put their cutlery away and take a deep breath.

“Mike,” Harvey says, reaching across the table for his hand. “We—“

“You must be tired,” Mike interrupts, taking Harvey’s hand in his. “Let’s talk about it tomorrow over dinner.”

Harvey frowns a little but then he nods. “Okay.”

Mike can see that Harvey is struggling, that he wants to say more, so he forces his lips into what he hopes is a bright, reassuring smile.

“It’ll all work out,” he says. “I promise.”

“If you say so.”

Harvey is clearly not happy so Mike decides to try another way to make him smile again.

“Hey,” he says, trying to sound both upbeat and casual. “We can look at one of those apartments tomorrow if you want to? In that blue building over there, that on the very right? I’ve got a key and there will be nobody home tomorrow.”

“That’s great, thank you, Mike,” Harvey says and smiles back. His smile is still a little faint, but it is there.

They don’t make love that night but Harvey holds Mike close all through the night and when Mike stirs in his arms the next morning, he captures his lips in a deep, loving kiss.

Harvey’s hand finds its way between Mike’s legs and his fingers wrap around Mike’s cock gently. 

Mike hardens in Harvey’s fingers even more and he can’t help but flex his hips and fuck into Harvey’s hand slowly, deliberately. 

He moans quietly and licks his lips. “I love you,” he whispers, his eyes still closed and his cheeks beginning to flush. “God, I love you so much…”

“Love you more,” Harvey murmurs, and Mike can hear the smile in his voice. He grabs Mike’s hand and brings it around his body, to his crack. “I…,” he whispers, swallowing thickly and slightly out of breath with sleep and arousal, and guides Mike’s fingers downwards between his cheeks and to his entrance. “Do you want to fuck me?”

“Yeah.” Mike’s voice is still soft with sleep but even he can hear the indescribable need laced through it. “Let me…”

Mike rolls over and scrambles to his knees between Harvey’s legs. He grabs the lube from the night stand and preps Harvey quickly but thoroughly. His cock is achingly hard by the time he rolls the condom over it and he can’t wait to bury himself in Harvey’s incredibly tight heat. He positions himself, the tip of his cock nudging at Harvey’s entrance, and looks up, searching for Harvey’s eyes.

The look he finds there makes his cock twitch in his grip and his stomach drop.

“Ready?” he croaks and his voice hitches a little at the end. He can’t remember ever wanting anything that much as he wants Harvey right now.

Harvey nods. “Yeah.” His eyelids flutter shut as Mike slowly pushes inside and Mike as to bite his lips as Harvey’s body takes him in inch by inch.

Harvey is tight and warm and the sensation of sliding into him takes Mike’s breath away and makes his brain short circuit. He tries to reign in his body’s movements, to keep it in check, but to no avail. He only manages to remain still, feeling Harvey pulse and clench around him for a few seconds before his body takes over. He groans as his hips start to move, first a shallow then a deeper, much more deliberate roll and thrust, pushing his throbbing cock into Harvey again and again.

Harvey is fisting the sheets underneath him, lifting his hips to meet Mike’s thrusts, his own cock hard and leaking between them.

For a while Mike just slams into Harvey and takes him almost forcefully until he’s so close to the edge his whole body is humming with the anticipation of orgasm. Then he stills. He stays as still as he can and his heart is racing in his chest as he bows down and claims Harvey’s lips for a messy, open mouthed kiss. His cock is throbbing and twitching inside of Harvey and for a moment he isn’t sure if what he tastes on the tip of his tongue is Harvey or the surge of his climax. 

Harvey’s legs wrap around Mike’s waist and Harvey holds him close, the sticky sweatiness of their skin impossibly hot between them and Harvey’s cock wet against Mike’s stomach. Harvey tightens around him and all Mike can do is moan and whimper and bury his head against Harvey’s shoulder as his body and mind drift closer and closer to the edge.

Harvey’s breath is hot against Mike’s skin and his whole body vibrates with the heat and closeness Harvey radiates.

“Come… I want you to come…” Harvey whispers into his ear, his lips caressing the shell teasingly, urging Mike on and coaxing his body into finally, finally falling over the edge. “I want you. Come for me… Mike – come with me…”

Harvey comes first and Mike follows him only seconds after, spilling himself deep inside of Harvey’s body. 

Harvey holds him close all the time while his cock releases spurt after spurt of semen, his mind flashing with blinding bolts of light every time a wave crests. 

Only when Mike comes down again he realizes that he’s bitten his lips almost bloody and that his fingers have left distinct marks on Harvey’s upper arms. He feels dizzy and as if he were floating and Harvey’s hands roaming his back, sides and arms are soothing and incredibly arousing at the same time. He’s short of breath and his head is spinning but he is unable to let go or to move in any way.

Harvey hums into his air and slowly, very slowly, Mike can take a breath again and his body begins to cool down. Once he comes to again a little he notices that he’s continuously moaning and murmuring under his breath and that his lips and tongue are constantly tasting Harvey’s skin and the lines of his collar bone and his neck. 

Harvey’s legs fall from around his waist to his sides and Harvey presses them together with Mike between them, keeping Mike together while he’s still threatening to fall apart.

“Hmmm,” Harvey hums and Mike shudders and for a moment there he thinks he’s going to come again but his cock is utterly spent and slowly softening inside of Harvey’s channel.

“God, that feels so good,” Harvey whispers into Mike’s ear and Mike nods, still tracing the last echoes of climax pulsing through his body with the tip of his tongue as patterns on Harvey’s listening skin.

“Yeah,” he breathes when he finally can form coherent thoughts again. “So good…”

He stays inside of Harvey as long as he can but he has to pull out eventually and after he has disposed of the condom Harvey pulls him close again, claiming his mouth in a languid, loving kiss.

“Ready to start the day?” he asks and pecks Mike’s lips again.

“Yeah,” Mike smiles and closes his eyes. “In a minute.”

*****

“Are we going all the way up to the top?” Harvey asks as they step into the elevator of Royal Ocean Plaza later that day and Mike inserts the card he pulls from his back pocket into the key slit.

“Nope, just to the fourteenth floor,” Mike grins and the elevator starts moving.

“You do maintenance work here sometimes?”

“Something like that. I occasionally check on the apartment, but not very often.”

“Owner out of town?”

“Sometimes.”

The cabin is not too small but it takes Harvey just half a second to close the distance between them and pull Mike into his arms. “Thank you for showing me this,” he says and kisses Mike passionately until Mike has to gasp for air.

“Hey, it’s no problem,” Mike grins and the elevator comes to a halt. “No need to thank me. Besides, they’re pretty horrible from the inside as well so you might want to leave again after just a few seconds…”

“I might,” Harvey grins back as he follows Mike across the floor to one of the two doors. “So what do we have here?”

“Three bedroom, three bathroom penthouse, roughly two thousand and five hundred square feet indoors and two thousand terrace and sundeck, private gym, plunge pool and hot tub outside,” Mike rattles off while unlocking the door and opening it. He holds it open to let Harvey step inside and closes it again once they’re in the lobby.

“Impressive,” Harvey says, taking a first look around. “A _little_ bit bigger than mine…”

“I like yours better.” Mike steps very close to where Harvey is standing and wraps his arms around him, gently kissing his lips. “I like everything that’s yours better. I love you. And I love your condo.”

“Sap,” Harvey smiles against Mike’s lips and Mike’s grin broadens. 

“Yep, that’s me.”

“Is it rented?”

“Nope. Furnished, but basically empty. Ready for the grand tour?”

Harvey nods and Mike proceeds to show him the whole apartment until they’re in the living-slash-dining room and Harvey turns around. 

“The furnishing is impersonal, the floor plan is hilarious and the general design of the whole complex is just about as ugly as the exterior, but the view is amazing.”

“It is, isn’t it?” Mike tries to walk past Harvey and towards the sliding doors to the terrace, he wants to open them and take Harvey outside, but Harvey blocks his way and pulls him into his arms.

“Yeah, it is, but that isn’t what I meant…” 

Their lips meet and the passion and possessiveness with which Harvey kisses him takes Mike’s breath away. The tip of Harvey’s tongue running over his lips has to be the most arousing thing he’s ever felt, but then again – that’s what he thinks or feels about almost everything Harvey does or says.

“Do you play?”

“What?” Mike is confused and his brows furrow. “What do you mean?”

“The grand piano?” Harvey nods to his left and Mike’s gaze follow his to the polished black _Steinway_ in the middle of the room. “Do you play?”

“No,” Mike shakes his head as Harvey lets go of him and walks over to the instrument. He opens the lid and props it up, and then he sits down and opens the key board. “I think it’s just for show.”

“Do you think it’s tuned?”

“It should be,” Mike says, watching Harvey closely. “I think someone comes over to do that regularly.”

“Let’s find out, shall we?” Harvey flexes his fingers and runs one hand over the keys, from low to high, a glissando waterfall. “Sounds good,” he smiles and flexes his fingers again. Then he starts to play and Mike recognizes a Scott Joplin rag. The music pours from the body of the piano like pearls and Harvey smiles. It looks as if he’s having fun, which, in return makes Mike smile brightly.

“I didn’t know you played,” Mike says and Harvey’s hands keep moving over the keys with a playful ease.

“My dad was a musician, you know, a saxophone player, and he made sure that Marcus and I learned our instruments,” he says, letting the music trail away and come to an end. “Haven’t played in a while, though. That’s a great instrument.” He nods at the _Steinway_ and rises from the chair. Carefully, he closes the lids, the one covering the keys and the large one, before he walks over to Mike again and claims his mouth once more.

He lets himself be swept away by the kiss and he can feel his knees go weak. “Whoa,” he murmurs, breaking the kiss and taking a deep, shaky breath. “You’re making me dizzy…”

“Do you think…” Harvey’s voice is deep and hoarse and it sends shivers down Mike’s back and lights a fire in his groin. “Do you think you’d let me fuck you in here? Over the kitchen counter, maybe? Or on the grand piano?”

“I… I think I might,” Mike breathes and gasps when Harvey thrusts his hips against his. “Oh god…”

“Where?”

“What?” Mike briefly wonders how and why Harvey keeps asking him questions but then Harvey kisses him again and all coherent thoughts are out of the window. 

“Where would you let me fuck you?”

Harvey’s tongue is already fucking his mouth and his hand slips into Mike’s pants, cupping his ass, and Harvey’s other arm around him is the only thing that keeps Mike from sinking to the floor right there and then.

“Anywhere,” Mike whispers or at least that’s what he thinks he does. Harvey’s finger has found its way between his cheek and is inching closer to his entrance and Mike can already feel his cock beginning to ooze pre-come. “Anywhere you want. Just hurry…”

Harvey has the cheek to grin and he pushes Mike backwards, his lips never leaving Mike’s, and backwards and even further backwards until Mike’s back hits the kitchen counter.

“Up,” Harvey coaxes softly and Mike hops onto the counter, a moan falling from his lips at the friction his pants cause to his cock. “Lie back.”

Mike does as he is told, biting his lips and squeezing his eyes shut. He’s so hard it hurts and he can’t wait to feel Harvey inside of him again. “Hurry, hurry, hurry,” he mouths as Harvey quickly opens first his and then Mike’s trousers.

Harvey’s hands urge Mike’s hips to lift and Mike’s body complies, Mike’s fingers grabbing the edges of the counter tight, so tight, sweaty and trembling with arousal and anticipation.

Harvey quickly yanks down Mike’s jeans and boxer briefs and makes quick work of shoving down his own pants as well, not before pulling a condom and a small tube of lube from his pocket.

“Always prepared,” Mike huffs when Harvey touches him there with slick, lubed-up fingers. “Thank god…”

“Yeah.” Harvey sounds concentrated and urgent and when Mike opens his eyes that’s exactly the look he finds on Harvey’s face. 

Harvey is staring at his fingers as he works Mike open and Mike can feel Harvey’s fingers tremble inside of him. He moans and Harvey stills for a moment.

“Good?”

“God, yeah…” The need and arousal in Harvey’s voice turns Mike on so much and his cock twitches against his stomach, another drop of pre-come seeping from his slit. “So good, so good…”

“God, I love how responsive you are…”

Harvey curls his fingers and Mike pushes back against them, trying to draw Harvey in deeper, as deep as he can. “Yeah,” Mike moans, rolling his hips. “God, yeah…”

After that, it seems as if Harvey can’t really wait much longer. He only stretches Mike for a little longer before he rolls the condom onto his cock, lubes it up and positions himself between Mike’s legs.

He enters Mike in one swift yet forceful thrust and when he bottoms out, both he and Mike moan. 

This is how it should be, Mike thinks. This is where he belongs. 

It’s hard and fast, Harvey thrusting into Mike again and again and neither Harvey nor Mike is able to last long, so Mike can feel his climax building after only a few of Harvey’s thrusts and he can tell that Harvey isn’t very far behind.

Harvey’s fingers wrap around Mike’s cock and Harvey tarts to jerk him off in sync with the movements of his hips. His dick swells and twitches inside of Mike and that pressure, that sensation of being filled, of being _connected_ to Harvey like that is almost too much to bear.

Mike opens his eyes and again, the look on Harvey’s face takes his breath away. 

Harvey is thrusting into him, one hand on his cock and the other gripping his hip tight, and the look of concentration on his face has been replaced by an expression of deep, desperate need and utter abandon. 

Mike’s hips jerk involuntarily, seeking to meet Harvey’s thrust, once, twice and with a guttural moan Mike comes. Stars explode in front of his eyes so he has to close them and his back arches as he empties himself over Harvey’s fingers and onto his belly. 

Harvey follows shortly after, his cock swelling inside of Mike until he comes, too, deep inside of Mike, and Mike can feel it everywhere. 

Their orgasm tears through them sharply at first, then as a warm, ongoing pulse that makes Mike’s skin hum and his nerve endings buzz.

Slowly, slowly the room comes back into focus, and Harvey is grinning down at him, licking Mike’s come off his own fingers. “You taste good,” he rasps, eyes still resonating with the waves of his climax.

Mike feels too content and too relaxed to do anything but smile. Blissed out, that’s what he is, truly blissed out, and that thought makes him chuckle.

“What’s so funny?” Harvey smiles and Mike shakes his head.

“Nothing, just…”

Harvey leans down and pulls Mike up a little at the same time and kisses him gently.

“I know. I feel the same.”

They clean themselves off quickly after that and Mike finishes the tour of the apartment by showing Harvey the terrace and the sun deck with the pool and the hot tub. The view really is amazing, it’s a clear day and the African coast is clearly visible across the Strait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just one more chapter to go, folks... Thank you ever so much for taking this journey with me (and the boys, of course)!!!! <3


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it. Thank you so much for reading!!!

Mike has a short, two hour rock tour in the afternoon and when he comes back, Harvey has already set the table in the _Cassidy’s_ stern. 

“You’re cooking?” Mike asks, sniffing the air. There’s a spicy scent coming from below deck, and Mike licks his lips. “Smells delicious.”

“Thank you. Do you want a beer before dinner? The food should be ready in about half an hour.”

Mike nods but then he looks over to the _Sundance_ and then to the shower building across the marina. “I’ll just grab a quick shower before that. I stink.”

“You don’t stink,” Harvey pulls Mike close for a kiss. “And you can shower here if you want to.”

“Great,” Mike grins. The shower on the _Cassidy_ is much nicer than the showers the marina offers, no matter how luxurious for marina-standards they may be. Also, this gives him an opportunity to use some of Harvey’s shower gel again. “Let me just get some fresh clothes.”

He breaks free from the embrace and hops over to the Sundance where he takes a fresh set of underwear, jeans and t-shirt from the closet. Harvey hands him an ice cool bottle of beer when he returns and Mike takes a long swig before he disappears below deck to shower.

Harvey is working in the kitchen when Mike is done and he runs his fingers through Mike’s still damp and tousled hair, smiling at him warmly.

“You look ridiculous.”

“Yeah, you too,” Mike kisses back and swats Harvey on the ass playfully. “I’ll be outside.”

Harvey nods and continues cooking while Mike climbs up the stairs and gets comfortable at the table. The evening is warm and the air is balmy and the moon is already rising brightly in the darkening sky.

Mike leans back against the railing, spreading his arms out wide, and closes his eyes. He inhales deeply and his lips curl into a broad smile.

This is it. This is the best, this really is life, and he can’t remember ever being so happy, so calm and centered. Still, there is a conversation he and Harvey need to have, and even though Mike is sure that everything is going to turn out all right, the thought of it makes his stomach lurch a bit.

“Hey,” Harvey says, climbing on deck and carrying a bottle of white wine. “This will go better with the food.” He pours Mike and himself a glass and sets the bottle into the cooler at the edge of the table. “Just a few more minutes.”

“Need any help?” Mike asks and Harvey shakes his head. 

“Nah, I’m good.”

While Harvey is finishing their meal, Roger and Victoria return to their boat, waving at Mike cheerfully.

“Hey, Mike! You’re back!”

“Yeah,” Mike replies, taking the last swig from his beer. “Was just a short trip.”

“Couldn’t stay away from that man of yours for too long, eh?” Victoria teases and Mike grins.

“Nope, he’s very hard to resist.”

“Looks like it,” Roger laughs. “Hey, by the way, your friend came by to see you while you were gone. The slim, nerdy one? The IT guy?”

Benjamin. Mike sighs inwardly and nods. “Thank you, Roger. I’ll give him a call.”

“You do that,” Roger tips his head and he and Victoria wave at Mike again before they climb onto their boat and disappear below deck.

A minute later Harvey is back with two plates of risotto. “It’s dried tomatoes and porcini mushrooms. I hope you like that.”

“Smells delicious,” Mike says and takes the plate Harvey is offering him from his hand. “Looks great, too.”

“Dig in,” Harvey smiles as he sits down. They toast each other, take a sip of wine and start to eat.

“Hmmmm,” Mike hums around a bite of risotto. “This is amazing.”

“Come to New York with me,” Harvey almost blurts out once he’s swallowed his first fork of risotto, and Mike chokes a bit on the food in his mouth. “I won’t be able to cook for you every night, but I want you to come with me.”

“Harvey—“

“Listen, Mike,” Harvey interrupts and Mike can see a hint of nervousness in his eyes, a touch of worry paired with a distant panic. “I know that your life is here, in Gib, I know that… but I can’t stay here forever. I’ll have to go back eventually and… Please. Come to New York with me.”

“My life,” Mike says and reaches across the table to give Harvey’s hand a quick squeeze, “is wherever you are.” He smiles and a relieved breath escapes Harvey’s lips. “But—“ Harvey’s brows furrow immediately when Mike says that. “But I don’t know if I can just leave. My friends are here and… You haven’t met them and I don’t see them too often anymore but there are Benjamin and Lola and Oliver, and everybody knows me here. Charlie and Stu and all the others. I don’t know if… I want to be with you, I’m _going_ to be with you, I promise, and we _will_ figure this out, but there are things here, too.”

“I can get you a job in New York,” Harvey says after a short pause. “You can work at my firm and I—“

“I have a job,” Mike says calmly, searching for Harvey’s eyes. “I have a job _right here_.”

“I mean a real job.”

Mike can feel how his eyebrows raise and Harvey quickly shakes his head.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it like that. I know you’re good at what you do, but… I just meant something where you could use your potential a bit more. Maybe make a little more money so you don’t have to—“

“Harvey,” Mike interrupts, smiling faintly, and Harvey falls silent immediately. “The apartment I showed you today? It’s mine. I have, I don’t know, maybe fifty million dollars in my bank account? At least it was something like that the last time I checked. And by checked I mean talked to Stanley, my finance guy. And by bank account I mean stocks and bonds and funds and real estate and whatever he sees fit to invest the money in.”

“You…”

“I told you I sold the company after Trevor.... It was worth a lot.”

“No shit.” Harvey stares at Mike with wide eyes. “You don’t say.”

“I am not interested in that money. In money in general, I mean, but especially not in that money. Yes, I have it. But it doesn’t define who I am, it doesn’t define how I live and what I do. I live like this, here, on the boat, being a guide, because I _want_ to live like this. It fits.”

“I see,” Harvey says, nodding slowly. “And New York doesn’t.” He holds Mike’s gaze until Mike has to look away. His eyes trace the rim of his plate, and he bites his lips. When he looks up again, locks eyes with Harvey once more, everything seems so very easy all of a sudden.

“I don’t know that yet,” Mike replies after a long pause. “It might not, not at first, and I may have a hard time to adjust. But I am not scared because I know I won’t be alone. Because I know you will be there with me.” He reaches for Harvey’s hand again and laces their fingers together. “I’m not scared to come with you. Not one bit.”

“Does that mean what I think it means?”

“Well, that depends on what you think it means,” Mike grins, letting go of Harvey’s hand and bringing his glass to his lips. He takes a sip and lowers the glass again, still smiling at Harvey.

“You’re coming with me.”

“I guess I am, Harvey. Of course I am.”

Harvey is beautiful and even more so when he smiles, but the smile he gives Mike after that is beyond beautiful. It’s soul-shattering and radiant and it shows Mike that he has made the exact right decision. 

“Now can we eat?” Mike grins and drops his gaze to his plate for a split second. “I’m starving and this delicious risotto of yours is not getting any warmer.”

“Fuck the risotto,” Harvey says and keeps staring at Mike. He just keeps staring at Mike as Mike spoons up some more food and brings it to his mouth.

“Nah,” Mike shakes his head and licks his lips. “I’d rather eat it, thank you very much.”

They finish their meal talking about anything and everything, Mike telling Harvey about his friends and vice versa, about baseball and music and, yes, about Mike relocating to New York as well. 

One thing Mike asks for is that they take another two or three weeks here in Gibraltar so he can tie up some loose ends – and to throw a farewell party for everyone at _Charlie’s_. Also, he still wants to take Harvey to La Linea to have tapas at _Hacienda Patagonica_ , crossing the border to Spain together, hand in hand.

Harvey makes arrangements for the _Cassidy_ to be brought back to the States once they’ve left and Mike hires someone to look after the _Sundance_ when he’s gone. For a while, Mike contemplates selling his apartment but he wants to keep the fob to the pools, so he ends up keeping the apartment as well. Stanley is not amused by that and he makes that very clear at their farewell party, chastising Mike for a decision that’s obviously not very smart, but Mike just smiles at him and pats him on the back and orders him another beer and that’s that.

On the night before they leave, when they’re lying in bed together, naked and sated, the smiles on their faces brighter than the moon and the stars in the sky above them, Mike reaches for something in the bedside table’s drawer and presses it into Harvey’s hand.

It’s the compass and it now has another word engraved in its lid, right below the two words that have already been there for a while.

_Plus Ultra  
Mike_

 

~fin~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I was kidding - this is not it yet. There's an epilogue... :D


	16. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now *this* is it. Thank you.

**Epilogue (Ten Months Later)**

It’s pretty warm for mid March and Mike lingers outside the store for a little while, letting the sunbeams warm his skin. He has missed the colors and the smells of this place and the view across the Strait. 

The store’s door swings open and an American couple steps outside, laughing about something Stu must have said. 

Mike smiles. Through the glass of the door he can see Stu walking around inside, probably putting something back in its shelf, where it belongs. He opens the door and the bell rings in a most familiar way.

“Just a moment, please! I’ll be back in a sec!” 

Mike’s smile broadens. Stu’s voice, bellowing through the room all the way from the back of the store, sounds exactly the same as it always has.

“Sure thing, Stuey,” he yells back, letting his fingers run over the merchandise, sail cloth and ropes and bits of boat railing on display, paint buckets and wood.

“Mike?”

Stu peeks around the shelf that is dividing the room in two, a huge grin on his face. “Well, look at what the cat dragged in…”

“Hey, Stuey,” Mike smiles and the air from his lungs is pressed out with a huff when the large, burly man pulls him into a bear hug.

“Well, well, well, Mikey,” he grins, patting Mike’s back. “It’s sure great to see you.”

“You too, Stuey.” When Stu lets him go, Mike steps back a little and takes a good look at Stu. “You look good.”

“And _you_ look _amazing_ ,” Stu says. “Although you’re missing a tan, buddy. America becomes you, it seems.”

“Yeah.” Mike can feel his smile broaden. “But I missed Gib. It’s good to be back.”

“How long are you here for?”

“Don’t know yet,” Mike shrugs. “Couple of weeks, maybe.” He scratches his cheek, the four day stubble making it itch. “Not sure how long Harvey can take off, but we’d love to stay at least a couple of weeks.”

“And what, pray tell, is _that_?” Stu’s hand catches Mike’s and brings it closer to his eyes. He squints at the golden band around Mike’s ring finger. “Well, well, _well_ – now, Mike Ross, a married man. Fancy that.”

“Yeah,” Mike smiles, staring at the gold band himself for a moment, blinking his eyes in wonder. “I know…” His thoughts trail away to that beautiful day in October, sun and blue skies and dried leaves in the park and the most breathtaking look on Harvey’s face Mike has ever seen. A soft-spoken, yet determined “Yes” and a pair of gorgeous bespoke suits and lots and lots of champagne.

“Best day of my life, I’m telling you…” 

Stu clears his throat after several moments of silence and Mike looks up with what he’s sure has to be a frighteningly dreamy look on his face. 

“Sorry…”

“What can I do for you, then?” 

“The _Sundance_ needs a paint job,” he says and Stu nods. “Last one has been a while.”

“Brushes still good?”

“Yeah, I just need the paint.”

“Okay,” Stu nods again and disappears into the back of the shop as he always does. “Hey, how’s New York treating you, then?” he yells from back there and Mike grins.

“Great,” he yells back. “Good city. It fits.”

Stu reemerges, carrying a heavy carton box. 

“Not too crowded for you?”

“Sometimes,” Mike muses, “but… we have a house a little outside of town, at the sea side, so we can get away and hide out there when it gets too much.”

With a dramatic sigh, Stu sets the box down on the counter. “You have a house in the Hamptons.”

It’s as much a question as a mocking reproach and Mike can feel himself blush. 

“Yeah.”

“Well, aren’t you a lucky one?”

“I am, Stuey, I really am. Oh, and I’m seeing someone. About Trevor, I mean. About what happened back then, and…”

“Good. That’s good, Mike.”

“There’s still a long way to go,” Mike pulls up his shoulders a little and shoves his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “But I’m getting there. I know I should have done that years ago, talk to someone, but… Yeah, maybe meeting Harvey finally made me realize that there’s no way around it, not really. Step by step, right?”

“Right-y-oh, Mikey, right-y-oh.”

Stu takes four buckets of paint out of the box and enters their prices into the old fashioned cash register. 

“Working?”

“Yeah,” Mike fishes his wallet from the back pocket of his jeans and counts the notes between his fingers. He hands them over to Stu and grins sheepishly. “Guess what?”

“Financial wizard? Investment banker? Major of the city of New York?”

“Tourist guide,” Mike grins and takes the change from the plate in which Stu has dropped it. 

“No way!”

“Yeah, way.” He stores his wallet away again and looks up. “I’m good at it and I love it. Lots of fresh air, too. Sometimes I even do bike tours.”

“Bike tours. In Manhattan.” Stu shoves the buckets over to Mike. “You’re insane.”

“Maybe a little.” The muscles of Mike’s face are beginning to hurt with all the grinning and smiling. God, he’s missed this.

“Maybe a lot.” Stu laughs and nods at the paint buckets. “Need any help with that?”

“Nah.” Mike shakes his head and nods in the direction of the door. “Harvey’s right outside.”

“Your man is right outside and you didn’t bring him in?”

“He wanted a closer look at one of the boats tied up there,” Mike says, shrugging. “I think he wants to buy one for over here.” His thoughts fly back to the _Sundance_ and the weird view of another boat than the _Cassidy_ tied up in the berth next to her. Weird. Wrong.

Stu squints. “Let me guess, a Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 469, by the name of _Eos II_?”

“Yeah. How did you know?”

“Because I’m good at this, kiddo, and I love it.” The grin that splits Stu’s face is infectious as hell and Mike shakes his head, smiling back at him.

“Yeah, you are,” Mike grins at the sight of Stu’s proud, happy face. “Oh, and guess what? He’s thinking about redoing my condo here. And I’m talking a complete make-over, new walls and all. As if he doesn’t have enough on his plate already as it is.”

Stu laughs, shaking his head. “Really?”

“Yeah, really. I told him good luck, but I highly doubt that it’s going to work out. That place is butt ugly. I should really get rid of it, like Stanley keeps telling me.”

“Well, if your man is as good at his job as I’m at mine – maybe he can pull it off.”

“Hmm,” Mike smiles and purses his lips. “Maybe. We’ll see.”

“Yeah,” Stu smiles back, nodding reassuringly. “But now get that guy of yours in here so I can hook him up with that boat’s current owner,” Stu tries to give Mike a stern look but without success. 

Mike nods and makes his way to the door. He opens it to the beautiful sight of the sailing boats lined up in the marina and a man crouched down by the stern of one of them. A man in white slacks and a dark blue cotton sweater with golden hair and bare feet in his loafers.

“Hey, Harvey,” Mike says and the man rises. He turns around and smiles.

Mike’s heart stops for a moment and his hand flies to his chest. He blinks.

Harvey shoves his hands into the pockets of his trousers and bounces on his heels. 

“Yes, Mike? Did you get the paint?”

“Come in here for a moment,” Mike gestures behind himself at the shop’s door. “I could use some help with the buckets and Stu wants to talk to you about that boat.”

Harvey steps up to him, takes off his sunglasses and pulls him close. He’s warm and solid and Mike immediately relaxes against his chest.

“In a minute, rookie,” Harvey murmurs and brushes his lips against Mike’s. “In a minute.”

 

~ fin ~

**Author's Note:**

> I'm [sal-si-puedes](http://sal-si-puedes.tumblr.com/) on tumblr. Come and say "Hi"!!


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